


The Unloved Kids

by AlrightDarlin (WhoopsOK)



Series: The Foxhole Kits [1]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Andrew Minyard Has Feelings, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, No Sex, Non-Sexual Age Play, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Other, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Team Bonding, Team as Family, The Foxes are learning to care about each other, Touch-Starved, Yes even the Monsters, caregiver!David Wymack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-08-03
Packaged: 2019-05-24 21:18:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 34,923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14962349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoopsOK/pseuds/AlrightDarlin
Summary: “I intend to treat them the same. I need strong athletes, not toddlers,” Wymack starts, but sits back with a sigh, running a hand over his face. “But hypothetically, if I had to look after a bunch of toddlers on the weekends…”Betsy’s eyes crinkle with her smile. “Are you asking advice?”“They’re screwed up enough,” Wymack says, “I’m not trying to make it worse.”(David Wymack takes his little nightmares and does his best to corral them and love them within an inch of their lives. He can’t change what happened to them, but he can be there for them now.)





	1. The Big Idea

**Author's Note:**

> There’s nothing explicit in this. No sex, no violence, nothing like that. However, there are allusions throughout to the things the foxes went through as kids. So basically, the trigger warnings are character specific. If you made it through the series okay, this fic should probably be easy, if a little emotional. That said, going forward if you think any particular chapter needs a warning, by all means, feel free to say!
> 
> It’s also important to note that there is _nothing else like this on my main Ao3._ Almost everything else I’ve written is really quite gross comparatively. If you like this, you probably aren’t interested in anything else I’ve written, just putting that out there upfront. I want you to have a good time.
> 
> Title from “I Am Not a Robot” by Marina and the Diamonds
> 
> Note 3/16/19: There hasn't been any plot related editing, I just realized I spelled Renee's name wrong, so I'm going to fix it.

Wymack isn’t exactly sure how the conversation got twisted around to this point, but he almost wishes he’d just let Kevin and Neil duke it out without intervening.

They’d been at each other in French all practice long and even without knowing what they were saying, Wymack could tell it was escalating in viciousness by the color in Kevin’s face. When pounding on the glass and telling them to stow it or run a 42k doesn’t work, he figures he’d better sort it the fuck out before they come to blows on game night. It’s already been a damn close call for the last half hour.

But now, sitting in his office, the tension is just crammed into a tighter space and Wymack is stuck in the middle. He’s doing his best to follow along, but it’s only happening half in English until Kevin spits out something that makes them both freeze, Neil’s face going abruptly blank.

“What did—?” Wymack rubs his temples, does he _even_ want to know? “Ok, spit it out, what the hell’s gotten into you two?”

“Nothing,” Kevin snaps, attempting to glare Neil into silence.

Neil is immune to Kevin’s glaring at this point. He starts to say something, something _stupid_ probably, but something even worse comes out. “Do you _want_ to have a childhood with me?”

Of all the bombs Wymack had been prepared to try and defuse, that one hadn’t even been on the radar. “ _What?_ ” he says, but then Kevin is launching to his feet, face twisted with ire.

“ _You will not mock me, as if you were—_ ” Kevin hisses in savage French, before Neil cuts him off.

“I’m not mocking you,” he says in English, then turns to Wymack. “You’d do it wouldn’t you?”

Wymack squints at him. “Do _what_?”

Neil pauses, opens his mouth to respond before he realizes he has no _clue._ He swallows, trying not to shrink in on himself.

“I mean… I don’t _know_ , I never had it either,” he shrugs. “Like… kids watch cartoons, right? And, uh, make… food together?” It’s probably more than a little unfortunate that he’s really stretching his imagination to think of something to say. Judging by Wymack’s face, it’s also probably just _sad_.

Neil doesn’t have a clue; he’s sure he must’ve had toys at some point, but he never got to keep them long. They’re all sort of vague ideas more than concrete memories. “Coloring books are still a thing, right?”

Even Kevin’s face looks a little strained, now that he realizes Neil isn’t teasing. “Are you implying we _color_?” he says, and there’s a sneer in his voice, but not nearly as much vitriol as usual. They all notice that.

Wymack looks uncomfortable all of a sudden, rubs the bridge of his nose like he has a headache. It’s mostly just to hide his expression though. “You’re not kids.”

“I don’t think we ever were,” Neil replies, and Kevin gives him a look he can’t read.

Nobody seems to have anything to say to that at first, but the fact that Neil voiced it at all and Kevin didn’t shut it down immediately gives Wymack pause. His inclination is to repeat himself; they’re _not kids_ , not really, not his or anybody else’s. But the fact that none of them ever _were_ sits heavily on him, that’s the whole reason he put this team together. He wants to help them build something

“Go shower. I’m gonna do some… thinking,” Wymack decides on finally. “ _Planning_ ,” he clarifies before it sounds like a shutdown.

The looks on their faces are equal parts shock and confused hope which pretty much seals it for Wymack. He needs a raise.

He should also probably talk to a therapist.

//\\\

Betsy just stares at him for a long time.

Wymack isn’t the type to fidget, but he figures she’s a good enough shrink to recognize that the way he’s staring out the window, sucking down too hot coffee, is probably close enough. He doesn’t let himself think about that part too hard, though, the reason he came in the first place is taking up too much space. The fact that he’s considering this—whatever _this_ even is—takes up too much of his brain power for him to worry about whether or not she knows he’s anxious.

What he _needs_ is for her to tell him if he’s anxious because he’s lost his goddamn mind or not.

“This is one of those things that counts as ‘ _above your pay grade_ ’, you know,” she says eventually, but it doesn’t sound like she’s dismissing him or, you know, considering reporting him.

“Everything I do with them is above my paygrade at this point,” Wymack mutters, fingers itching for a cigarette. He should stop fighting it and draft up a proposition for a raise.

“You want me to talk you out of it?” Betsy asks.

“That’s not what I said,” Wymack replies, a little taken aback by his own defensiveness. “I can’t give them their childhoods back,” he explains.

Betsy sets her mug down. “I don’t think any of them really want their childhoods _back_ ,” she points out. “Their concepts of childhood are largely influenced by abuse and neglect, is that what you want for them?”

“You know good and goddamn well I don’t.” Wymack wouldn’t send some of them back to their parents without a firefight.

“That’s the point,” Betsy replies calmly, a smile creeping onto her face. “They’ve lost a lot of childhood milestones, David. If you go through with this, you’re offering to help them rebuild with positive memories to balance out the trauma of their first childhoods.”

That sounds like a lot to offer when he isn’t sure he knows how to give it. “Shouldn’t someone with a degree do this?” he sighs.

“Re-parenting isn’t widely accepted let alone practiced in the psychiatric community,” Betsy says and there’s definitely a story there that Wymack can’t bring himself to ask about. “Even if it _was_ , the Foxes wouldn’t accept it from me or any other shrink. We’re not…” she thinks for a moment, “ _organic_ , I suppose, in our positions as authority figures.”

Wymack arches an eyebrow at her. “But I am?”

Betsy nods. “The Foxes are the only family some of them have and you’re the one who put it together.” She takes a sip of her hot chocolate, lets him digest that for a moment before he continues. “Childhoods, even simulated ones, are not meant to be spent in isolation. They’re going to need a community to get through this, people of similar standing that they are familiar with.”

“So it’s us or nothing,” Wymack surmises grimly.

“Professionally? No, of course not,” Betsy says. “This isn’t a matter of necessity. They could push through their issues in therapy if they go for the long haul.”

“Professionally,” Wymack parrots. Because _personally_ , they both fucking knew most of the team would almost certainly never agree to see a therapist again after they graduated. It’s a hassle getting them to be honest with Betsy when it’s mandatory to speak to her.

The knowing frown on her face puts his hackles up.

“It’s not your job to shoulder that, David,” Betsy reminds him. “You’re right, they aren’t children, but they _are_ young. They all still have the time and potential to grow up, even if you treat them the same as you always have.”

Wymack knows that, he really does. But he’s thinking about Neil and Kevin, his _son_ , sitting in his office looking surprised he would care about this part of them. He’s thinking about all his foxes and how many people had to have hurt them to land them on his team. He’s thinking about how they need his distance from their personal lives, his understanding that he can’t _fix_ them.

Those two things, though, are starting to seem like they aren’t the same thing.

“I intend to treat them the same. I need strong athletes, not toddlers,” Wymack starts, but sits back with a sigh, running a hand over his face. “But hypothetically, if I had to look after a bunch of toddlers on the weekends…”

Betsy’s eyes crinkle with her smile. “Are you asking advice?”

“They’re screwed up enough,” Wymack says, “I’m not trying to make it worse.”

“Well then,” Betsy says, “I guess it’s good your toddlers are old enough to answer that for themselves.”

The thought puts an embarrassed twist in Wymack’s chest, but she does have a point. If he’s not brave enough to even talk to them about it, whether or not he can actually _do_ it is a moot point.

Well. David Wymack has never thought himself a coward and doesn’t intend to start today.

The Foxes are a brave group, they had to be to survive the lives they’ve lived.

It’s about damn time someone is brave _for_ them, isn’t it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen, listen, I’m not a therapist/professional. I’m writing this because I want the Foxes to be in a good place and I’m mad at a lot of the adults that raised them. It’s self-indulgent, not educational. All to say, when Betsy talks at any point, she’s not giving you advice that’s necessarily real-world-applicable. Take care of yourselves.


	2. A Little Offer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wymack offers his Foxes a little space and asks what (and if) they want in it.

“Well, if you’re already scared of me, I must’ve done something wrong,” Wymack says when Kevin and Neil come into his office like soldiers before a firing squad. Neil stoic almost to the point of numbness, Kevin about to come out of his own skin with nerves.

“Getting called to the office doesn’t usually lead anywhere good,” Neil tries to joke, but he also has a point.

Wymack pauses because he hadn’t really thought of that. This is supposed to be about being comfortable, not just about getting behind a closed door to talk. He doesn’t think this is any kind of grave error, but the nerves on their faces make him want to do better already. Great, he’s setting the bar high.

“Ok, then, let’s go to the lounge,” he says because he called them in early specifically for this. Nobody should be around yet anyway. They glance at each other, but he’s already heading down the hall before they can respond.

They sit down on the couch in the same places they always do, heedless of the empty spaces. Wymack sits down instead of posting up in the front of the room, though.

“What is this about?” Kevin asks, ripping the bandage off.

“You can guess,” Wymack says coolly, “I’m thinking about what you asked me.”

Kevin goes flush, motioning accusingly at Neil. “ _I_ didn’t ask you—”

“I was thinking I’m offering to do it,” Wymack continues gently, watching as Kevin’s mouth clicks shut and they both stiffen in surprise. “You want to have a childhood with me?”

Neil recovers first, but only enough to speak, not enough to wipe the shock off his face. “You’re serious.”

Wymack nods. “Yeah, I’m serious,” he says. “I’m thinking every now and then, maybe after games or on weekends we agree on, you’re just kids,” Wymack explains. “You get to be little kids and nothing more.”

Kevin looks faintly embarrassed and skeptical, but he’s not yelling and hasn’t left, so that’s saying something. “We’re not kids,” he repeats Wymack’s sentiment back at him.

“No, but you could be little for a while,” Wymack says, “You could take a break from being college students, from being athletes. You…” he looks between them, their cheeks, from the mass of burns to the newly healed tattoo. Suddenly, he wants this so badly it nearly chokes him. “You got so much shit dumped on your plate as kids, you got no idea what it’s supposed to be like. I want to do that for you, _all_ of you.”

“How?” Neil asks and he sounds wary already.

“That depends on you,” Wymack says. “Can you tell me what you want? From me or in general?”

Neither of them have ever had very many options in their lives, basically born with the walls closing in. He can see the choices, the things they’d never even thought to ask for as real children, steal their voices. They look at each other, nearly equally overwhelmed, and Wymack takes mercy on them.

“You don’t gotta tell me everything right now. We got time,” Wymack reminds them. “But if you have an idea of something big, spit it out. If there’s something you _really_ want or something that scares the hell out of you and you want _nothing_ to do with, let me know.”

The silence stretches for long enough that he’s about to tell them to think on it and let him know when Neil speaks up.

“I’m trying not to be afraid of you,” he admits quietly, pointedly not meeting their eyes when they both turn to him.

“I’ll try not to give you any reason to,” Wymack promises. “No sudden moves, okay?”

Neil shifts, like that’s not quite it. “I want to learn to not be afraid of you.”

Wymack sits forward, reaches out slowly to grasp Neil’s shoulder. “We’ll work on that,” he promises, “I’m not going to hurt you. This isn’t going to be that kind of childhood.”

Kevin carefully keeps his eyes on Wymack when Neil ducks his head, nodding shortly.

“Kevin?” Wymack says, stroking Neil’s shoulder before sitting back.

There’s nothing to see on Kevin’s face, he’s carefully blanking himself out so Wymack can’t tell what he’s thinking. It’s taking a lot out of him, clearly, because he’s started sweating.

“I’m already getting you,” he says in a small, nervous voice Wymack has never had directed at him. It stings a little in its sweetness.

“You’re allowed to ask for more,” Wymack says, “What about me do you want?”

The discomfort radiating off Kevin is getting stifling. Neil says something in French that makes him suck in a breath, cover his face and nod.

“Neil?” Wymack tries.

“You’re a lot,” Neil says, seemingly more at ease speaking for Kevin, at least on this, between just the three of them. “You’re already a lot more…” he squints, “ _parental_ than we’re used to and you’re still offering more.”

“I already don’t know how to have you,” Kevin contributes stiffly. “You care, right now, I know that. You always cared, so asking for _more,_ that’s…”

Wymack doesn’t really get the urge to do anything touchy-feely all that often—though he imagines that’s about to change—but right then, he has to fight back the urge to hug both of them. How anyone in their lives ever let them get to this point without knowing how to be cared about is a mystery that will infuriate Wymack for the rest of his life.

“Ok, then we’ll start with that,” Wymack says, “You’re right, as a coach I do care about Kevin Day, the exy player. Neil Josten, too. I even think most days they respect me as a coach,” he adds, watches it amuse them. “But that’s not all I care about. You’re my son,” he says to Kevin who sobers, “I never got the chance to show that to you, what it’s like to have me looking out for you. I want—”

_To have known all along, right away, to have been there, to have never let you cross paths with the Moriyama’s, to have struggled, and fought, and stayed up at night, and raised you to know you are so goddamn loved, kid, and nothing’s gonna take that away._

Wymack clears his throat. “I want that for you. Neither of you ever had a dad, so you don’t know how to treat me, is that it? Hell, I never raised no kids, I hardly know what to expect.” He looks between them, “But more than anything, I want to be good for you. I want you to _know_ that there are people out there, people _right here_ who want good things for you _just because_.” He takes a breath, “You don’t have to ask for anything more, Kevin. I’m telling you, it’s already _yours_.”

Kevin’s throat clicks drily as he swallows, but he nods shortly.

“Take some time to think on it, ok? If you want anything more out of this, or just want somewhere to take it easy,” Wymack says. “I gotta talk to the rest of the circus.”

“You’re asking the others, too?” Neil asks, not exactly alarmed, but maybe a little surprised.

“We all have to agree to anything that happens. I’m not going to tell them what you said,” Wymack says, “But yeah, I’m offering them, too.”

Wymack squeezes Kevin’s shoulder at the tight look on his face.

“They have to know who’ll be there so nobody’s blindsided. But if they don’t want in, they’ll never know anything about what goes on when you’re little unless _you_ tell,” Wymack assures him. “Let me deal with the big picture, ok? That’s the whole point. You just think about what _you_ need and let me know.”

As he looks between them, gets identical nods, Wymack realizes he handled that with more ease than he thought he’d have been able to manage. Kevin and Neil were only the logical first step because they’d been the ones to start the ball rolling, but he still couldn’t have guessed their reactions. The rest of the team, a team made almost entirely of wild cards, is going to be an exercise in playing by ear.

Dan and Matt share a similarly startled look, while Renee’s eyebrows raise sharply.

“I don’t follow,” Matt admits.

“That makes four of us, I guess,” Wymack sighs, and spins his tale.

It’s still a genuine offer, even without them being his blood children, and he’s surprised to find the offer just as easy to make. He’s anxious as shit, yes, because there’s a lot of ways to misread “ _Let me take care of you, little one_ ” but that’s partly why he’s called them in together. This isn’t about isolation, this isn’t meant to be a secret behind a locked door. This is about family and comfort and being able to let go and have someone catch you.

They let him finish, before looking between each other as if checking that this is, indeed, the real life and not fantasy. He lets them process without interrupting.

Then Renee stands and holds out her arms in question, startling all of them. Wymack doesn’t hesitate to reciprocate, though he can’t help the confusion on his face. She doesn’t see it though, head over his shoulder.

“You’re nice,” is all she says. A simple statement, but with a complexity of tone Wymack expects from her, but can’t pick apart.

“I’m working on it,” he replies drily and she laughs. She doesn’t step out of his arms, even as she leans back to smile at him.

“I think it’d be nice,” she admits, “being your little.”

That’s pretty damn high praise and Wymack smiles, decides to wait on overt displays of affection when he thinks of kissing the top of her head. She laughs again when he roughly ruffles her hair as she rejoins the others, though. Damn, he’s already going soft, what a mess.

“It… could be fun?” Matt says cautiously, eyes flickering over to Dan.

“Do you want to be _our_ dad, too?” Dan asks bluntly, “Kevin has more than enough collateral drama on his own.”

Wymack can’t help the twist of his mouth. “Like you little wiseasses don’t bring your drama to me all the time anyway. You’re already mine.”

“You shouldn’t swear around little kids, we should have a swear jar,” Matt says and Renee is smiling lightly beside him. Wymack isn’t sure if his statement or Matt’s made the tension ease from Dan’s face, but he’ll take it either way.

“What is it exactly that we’ll have to do?” Dan asks pragmatically and Wymack loves her.

He shakes his head, though. “You don’t _have_ to do anything. This is about being happy,” he says. “Can you think of anything you want? Or anything you specifically _don’t_ want me to do?”

“I want to draw,” Renee says immediately. “I was too old for crayons by the time someone would’ve been willing to buy them for me.”

Dan looks at her, an awed realization on her face. “I never really got crayons either, not the nice kind,” she says, “I wouldn’t mind a stuffed animal. I think I had a bear once.”

A pained look crosses Matt’s face quickly before he smothers it and Wymack thinks she’s going to wind up with more than just the one he intends to get for her.

Wymack nods. “Crayolas can happen. Matt?”

Matt blinks back to himself, before shrugging, averting his eyes.

“No time for embarrassment, Boyd.”

“Matt,” Matt says softly, clears his throat and shrugs again, “Mattie? And… hugs?”

When Wymack had set out to do this, he’d known it would be hard, but not because of _this_ , the ache in his chest that just keeps _growing_. Because it’s easy to forget; Matt loves his mom and has forgiven his dad and is clean and put together. But Matt got the nanny that was raising him snatched away from him and had drugs shoved in to replace her. The drugs never hugged him back and, _hell_ , Wymack could’ve given this all along. Offered anything his little heart desires and Matt just wants closeness.

If this is all they’re asking for, they’re going to wind up spoiled _fast_.

Shoving up off the wall, Wymack motions him forward. “C’mere, Mattie,” he says and Matt stands a little over his head, but there’s something horrendously endearing about the way he folds so his face is on Wymack’s shoulder. “You get all the hugs you want, ok?”

The unshielded relief shining in Dan’s eyes makes Wymack _certain_ the number of stuffed animals and hugs in her dorm room are about to multiply very sharply. He’s glad for them, being in love—he thinks as Matt whispers a choked “ _Thanks_ ” against his shoulder—they’re good for each other. Renee is watching this unfold serenely like she’s still thinking how nice it all is.

Wymack tries to ride this positivity to keep his nerves from getting the better of him when Allison and Nicky come in.

As soon as he starts to explain, the air in the room changes, not with outright revulsion or hostility, but definitely something disquieted. Allison is looking at him sidelong like she’s never seen him before and Nicky is unabashed in his confused dismay that confuses Wymack in turn.

But then Nicky swallows nervously. “You don’t mean like kinky sex stuff, right?”

“ _Christ,_ Nicky!” Allison exclaims, horrified, before Wymack can even get past his own cold shock.

“I mean, most—!” Nicky starts to defend, but Wymack cuts him off.

“I’m not most of whoever you were about to say,” he says sharply, but reels in his own horror when Nicky winces. “This isn’t about _anything_ like that, not for us.” That’s non-negotiable and his tone must’ve implied that because the pinched look on Nicky’s face eases.

“So it’s really just about…” Allison begins, looking less tense as well, but still unnerved. “What? You think our childhoods fucked us up so much you have to rewrite them?”

Wymack shakes his head. “This isn’t about what fucked you up,” he says, because they _are_ fucked up, he isn’t going to lie to their faces and say they aren’t. “This is about you, right now, having a chance to balance yourself and your idea of being a kid so you can sort your shit out. Maybe not even the deep down stuff, just time decompress from being collegiate athletes. Letting me take care of you instead for a while.”

“That’s really nice and all, but you don’t have to do this,” Nicky says hurriedly, smiling so wide his eyes close. Hiding. “Not for me, Coach.”

“I don’t have to do anything for you,” Wymack replies, because he thinks he gets where that came from. Nicky has been taking care of himself and his cousins for years, he’s hardly had a moment to breathe between the strain of keeping it together. He might not even know what to do with himself without that stress. “You’re more than capable of taking care of yourself, of your family. You’ve done it this whole time on your own.”

If the way Nicky’s face crumples is any indication, Wymack guessed right. “That’s not…” he starts, but his voice shakes.

“I’m offering a space where you don’t have to,” Wymack continues quietly, then turns to Allison. “To both of you, all of you. You don’t have to accept, but it’s there for you if you want it.”

Allison stares at him for a long time before turning to Nicky who looks wide eyed and emotional. “I’m not calling you dad,” she says, but she’s looking at Nicky like it’s easier.

Wymack nods. “Didn’t figure you would. Coach works fine.”

Nicky’s expression is difficult to read because there are so many emotions in it that Wymack doesn’t even know where to begin. He nods, jerkily after a moment. “I…want to try,” he breathes like a confession, “I can’t promise anything, but I want to try.”

Wymack nods again. “Can you tell me anything you want from me?”

“A pony,” Allison says without hesitation. She rolls her eyes, amused, when Wymack shoots her a dry look.

 “Stories with happy endings,” Nicky says quickly, messing with his fingernails when they both turn to him. His face crinkles, “And no Veggie Tales.”

Wymack nearly winces at the thought of asking if they would like to hear a bedtime story, but damn if they haven’t all had enough nightmares for one lifetime. If reading Dr. Seuss will help Nicky sleep at night, he’ll fucking do it.

Allison sags unsubtly so her shoulder is pressed against his, tapping her chin in thought. “Gotta think,” she says, “but don’t call me your princess.”

Wymack nods.

“Alli?” Nicky offers, his usual warmth returning to his tone, “Nicky is already cute.”

“Is there a rule about cute?” Wymack asks, then exclaims, “ _What?_ ” when they both roll their eyes.

“Alli and Nicky sounds like a _great_ kids show,” Allison answers Nicky, then to Wymack, “Kids are cute.”

“Sure. My very own cute little nightmares,” Wymack grumbles, rubbing a hand over his face, but he doesn’t miss the way they smile at him, then each other. He’s not above doing this for them just out of fun, letting his foxes have fun.

Of course, not everyone sees it that way.

Aaron looks livid before Wymack even finishes. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

Wymack gives him a sour look. “Does this seem like the kind of shit I would joke about?” Putting Aaron and Andrew together for this might not have been the best move on his part, but, well, here they are. The purest forms of apathy and anger Wymack has ever had directed at him. “ _No_ , Aaron, I’m not kidding. I’m just offering—”

“No,” Andrew says.

Wymack starts to argue, but arguing with Andrew has never been anything but a headache. And anyway, this isn’t supposed to be about anyone taking things they don’t want, Wymack isn’t going to force him. _But still._ “Okay,” he says, “If you decide to tag along—”

They’re both already standing.

“Ask Renee, Kevin, or Neil if we’re meeting up,” Wymack continues, it has the intended effect of making them stop walking.

“Neil?” Aaron says a little shrilly, “ _Kevin?_ ”

Wymack stands, too. “Nicky’s gonna get skittish if you ask him, but—”

“What do you think you’re doing, Wymack?” Andrew says and Aaron’s face loses its color at his tone. Wymack doesn’t react. “You’re pissing me off.”

“You’re always pissed off,” Wymack replies with the usual glibness to smother the sigh that wants to come out. He picks up a pack of cigarettes, puts them back down unopened, “Give me something different to be worried about.”

“I’ll _kill_ you _._ ”

Wymack pauses at that. Andrew has never actually threatened him that directly before, but then Nicky’s words catch up to him and he feels sick. Andrew’s childhood is a whole different minefield than the others, this offer isn’t just weird to him, it’s _threatening._ Wymack is honestly a little surprised he hasn’t seen a knife yet.

“You won’t have to,” Wymack says, “It’s not going anywhere near there.”

“Near where?” Andrew says dangerously, the smile Wymack hasn’t seen on him sober creaking across his face.

“I’m not gonna point out your fucking bruises, Minyard, you know where they are,” Wymack snaps, feeling worse by the second, like maybe this was a shit idea and he should’ve known better than to ask them into this. “I’m offering you the same thing I offered everyone.”

“ _Everyone?_ ” Aaron asks, aghast. “The others _all_ agreed to this?”

“It doesn’t matter what they agreed to,” Wymack says, but that’s not quite it. “It matters what you want. If you don’t think this would be good for you, don’t do it.”

“ _Good for us?_ ” Aaron exclaimed, “What part of this could _possibly_ —?”

“Don’t upset yourself over it,” Wymack says firmly, because he’s not really surprised by getting a hard-pass from either of the Minyards. He knows Betsy isn’t going to get in the middle of this, but he half-hopes she can at least convince them he’s not _malicious_. “If you want to talk about it later, you know where to find me. If you want to show up, ask me or one of the—”

Aaron tears out of the room before Wymack can finish, Andrew turning smoothly to follow him.

“The others,” Wymack sighs to the empty lounge.

Even though he’d expected it, it nags Wymack a little that they said no. Not anything big because Betsy is right, they can chunk through their issues on their own if they work on it. And Andrew likes Bee enough that he damn well might and Aaron loves Katelyn too much to risk a risky future. Even so, he’s sad they won’t get to see this.

Shaking himself, he thinks of Renee’s smile and Matt’s hug and all the quiet, willing wonder of his other foxes. He thinks of his son who will get to be a son for once, Neil who could learn not to flinch. He lets those images sit on his heart for a moment.

By the time practice rolls around, he’s back to yelling the usual threats—something that seems to make everyone relax—even if he’s still buoyant with anticipation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hi, this is a disclaimer of sorts! Let’s be clear with a grand, sweeping statement: age play and p//d*filia are not related, not even for people who age play sexually. But Andrew doesn’t seem like the type to see the distinction, especially not with his childhood being colored by repeated sexual trauma. I can’t imagine him seeing age play as therapeutic or relaxing/fun (if he even sees anything as fun) right away. Wymack coming out of left field with this offer is more like a betrayal than anything, at least at first. Mild spoiler, though? This is a happy story.


	3. The First Little Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wymack talks to Abby and then has his first night with his littles.

Abby listens to him patiently as he explains, watching as he rolls her ankles seemingly just to give his hand something to do. She has to know it’s because he’s… not embarrassed, exactly, but definitely something akin to it at the premise of this.

There isn’t any fear, not of her leaving him anyway, but he is a little worried about her talking him out of it. Or giving him _what for_ since he didn’t tell her before he talked to the team. She pulls her feet away when he finishes and he doesn’t let himself hang on pathetically, though the urge is there. But then she’s leaning forward to kiss the corner of his mouth and any dread he may have been ignoring vaporizes. This isn’t a kiss goodbye.

“I think this could be good for you,” she says.

Wymack looks at her incredulously. “Good for _me_?”

Abby pats his cheek. “David, your mission has always been about giving the kids everyone else had given up on a chance to save themselves,” she says, “but you’ve always…made it a point to keep them at arm’s length.” She shifts so she’s under his arm, his fingers laced in hers. “But I _know_ they’re special to you. Maybe you should treat them like they’re special to you, too.”

Wymack is struck by the look on her face and the idea that he loves more than any woman he’s ever been with. He seeks comfort in her gaze and she lets him take it as he tries to find his words. “I don’t know what I’m doing here, Abs.”

She hums in agreement, smiling at the annoyed look he gives her. “Suggestions?” she asks and when he grunts. “You’re already doing a great job. Just make everything…smaller. Child friendly.”

“Meaning?” Wymack says and has the urge to pull out a notepad.

“Make rules,” she says, “Have some sort of structure so they know what you want from them _._ ”

“I don’t want anything from them,” Wymack starts.

“You want them to be rested and fed. You want them to be well-adjusted. You _don’t_ want them to hurt each other…” Abby counts off on her fingers.

“Well, yeah, but that’s—”

“Obvious?” Abby starts and Wymack swallows the word back. “How much dumb stuff did you get up to as a kid before you learned it’d hurt?”

And, ok, put like that she has a point. The foxes have touched a lot of stoves instead of having adults tell them hot things burn. Hell, the foxes have had adults _intentionally burn them._ Thinking about the scar on Neil’s shoulder, Wymack frowns. It’s easy, so easy to be nice to them, compared to what they’re used to. But he wants to be _good_ for them, too.

“So rules,” he says. “Explicitly stated.”

Abby smiles. “Now he’s getting it,” she says, then her face scrunches in thought. “Maybe some plastic plates and sippy cups, too.”

“ _What?_ ” Wymack says, incredulous, but then Abby _does_ pick up a notepad.

The incredulity he’s feeling doesn’t really fade, maybe even enters the territory of surreal when he finds himself standing in line at a dollar store. Nine new cartoony-plastic place settings, a stack of coloring books… a jumbo drawing pad… and a few jumbo boxes of crayons? That seems like a good place to start, right?

“Starting a daycare?” The cashier jokes nervously, clearly missing the “ _shut the fuck up_ ” radiating off Wymack. He’s ordering online next time.

 “They’re a gift,” he says.

At least at the grocery store the cashier doesn’t ask questions, only smiles knowingly—no, she doesn’t know really, but she’s not exactly _wrong_ is she?— at his basket.

Even her laugh is friendly when he snatches a family sized pack of cookies off temptation isle before he pays.

\\\//

It starts out… less awkward than Wymack expected, to be completely honest.

It’s not unlike a normal team dinner, except with the pretense of what it’s supposed to start.

Wymack is cooking as they all filter in, dressed down in comfortable clothes. Sweats, most of them. He thinks he’d like for them to feel comfortable in pajamas one day, but that’s a conversation for another time. Everyone he expected comes, which is to say the twins are missing, but he doesn’t let it show that they’re _Missed_ , when he’s got seven other kids to focus on. The Minyards are menaces, but they’re grownups; he doesn’t have to worry about them tonight. It’s a tight squeeze as it is.

They’re offered hugs as they come in, which are returned with grateful enthusiasm—except for Kevin who is a little stiff in his arms and Neil who pauses long enough that Wymack doesn’t press him.

“Shoulder?” he asks, raising his hand slowly. When Neil says, “Sure,” he squeezes his shoulder gently before ushering him on inside.

There are nuggets in the oven and macaroni on the stove, timers set and ready when he has them sit in the living room. The art supplies are stacked up neatly in the middle of the floor, soon to be sprawled out all over everything, probably. Renee beams instantly, taking Dan’s hand and tugging her to the floor. Neil looks a little uncertain, but when Nicky crashes into his side and Matt exclaims excitedly, _genuinely_ excitedly that he hasn’t seen _Rugrats_ stuff in ages as he settles down with the book, Neil eases onto the ground to join them. A quiet kid, Wymack knows the type, actually. He doesn’t expect him to speak much, an interesting change of pace.

Kevin looks the most nervous out of all of them, though, so Wymack ruffles his hair, pulling him out of his own head. “Don’t stress,” he says, motioning towards the others. “Color for a bit— _hey_ ,” he says lowly when that makes Kevin cringe. “You’re not too big to color, Kev, just relax. Dinner will be ready soon.”

The nickname makes Kevin blink at him, but when he nudges him forward this time, he takes a deep breath. “Ok, yeah,” he mutters and sits down bracketed by Nicky and Neil. Wymack fights back a smile when Neil silently hands Kevin the coloring book of landmarks. He’d thought Kevin might like that one, too.

Nicky is talking a mile a minute and Allison seems to have caught some of it, because they’re going back and forth about princesses. Matt seems genuinely interested in talking about cartoons, though he keeps exclaiming “ _What! We have to watch it, then!_ ” every time someone says they haven’t seen any of the _dozens_ he’s mentioned. The chaos actually seems to do well for the shier members of the foxes. The tension in Neil’s shoulders eases the longer Matt talks to him, relaxed even if he still looks a little too old for the situation.

When Kevin glances over at Renee’s drawing, she catches him, smiles at his boyish flush. Before he can turn back to his own book, she moves over to lie beside him, continuing drawing where he can see. As though her presence was permission, he watches her doodle, looking faintly embarrassed when Allison and Dan start comparing him to the Disney princes.

Wymack lets his attention juggle between all of them, complementing the pictures they show him, listening to their comments about cartoons and movies. He starts playing dots and boxes with Kevin and Renee, tells Nicky, yes, he will seriously consider a sing-along night, _no_ , Neil you don’t have to sing if you don’t want to. Mattie, since you suggested a swear jar, you’re contributing first. Yes, Alli, we can play pretend one day and you don’t have to be the princess, and _ask_ Kevin if he’d like to be.

Kevin blushes, doesn’t say no. “You’re not making fun.”

Allison pauses, because that wasn’t quite a question, more like a realization. She looks at him for a long time. “No,” she points at his cheek, “Big Kevin is the queen. Of course little you is the princess.”

That seems to actually, _deeply_ please Kevin. The boyish look on his face is new enough that everyone seems at a loss for what to do with it. He misses the surprise on their faces, though, bowing his head as soon as Allison speaks. “I can live with that,” he mumbles.

“How about that’s a rule, ok?” Wymack says and they all turn to him, “We don’t make fun of anyone who doesn’t think it’s funny, too. If they say stop, knock it off, ok?”

When he gets a round of nods, he smiles at them. “So Kev’s our princess, which of you troublemakers is the pirate?”

That launches off a whole new round of excited arguing as Wymack gets up to check the food.

The sight of the juice cups with lids and straws seems to embarrass them all a little, but they take them without comment beyond which colors they want. With their plates in hand, they gather around the kid-friendly Netflix on his television. A lot of the suggestions are _not_ children’s movies which Wymack takes with appropriate dry-humor until he offers, “Ok, how about something age appropriate?”

That earns him several blushes and wide-eyed looks, the fondness for them swelling up instantly. “We’re just going to go through all the Disney movies if you don’t pick.” Not tonight, of course, but they seem to understand that and it delights them.

“We gotta start with Frozen!” Nicky exclaims.

“No way!” Matt replies around a mouth full of nuggets, “Neil and Kevin haven’t seen the classics yet!”

“Chew your food before you choke,” Wymack snaps, “Vote on it, come on.”

They wind up watching Beauty and the Beast in some sort of bizarre compromise Wymack doesn’t exactly keep track of. When their food is finished, they sit their plates aside to be washed and just sort of… slot into each other.

Matt starts it, tugging Dan under one arm and motioning Neil closer with the other. Neil looks a little confused, but slides over enough that he’s pressed against Matt’s arm before turning back to the movie. Allison and Renee are twisted up together, Nicky’s head resting on Renee’s hip after she tugs his arm over her lap. Wymack sits with Nicky’s back pressed against his outstretched legs, half watching the movie, caring more about his littles, though. It takes Kevin a while, but he incrementally shifts in from the outskirts of the group. Eventually, Neil whispers something that sounds like it contains “ _looks uncomfortable_ ” before Dan reaches back and pulls Kevin against her other side, Matt’s hand easily adjusting to catch his shoulder.

Wymack smiles at the lost way Kevin looks at them, unsure of what to do with himself, before defrosting. He’s awkward about it, probably damn well knows it, but Dan gives him a sleepy smile when he lets himself rest against her shoulder, relaxes under Matt’s hand.

When the movie ends, most of his foxes are half asleep and Wymack is loathed to have them move. Still, he feels like it’s probably a better idea to let them process on their own after the first time. He ruffles the two heads closest to him, Nicky grumbling and Allison turning to face him, “Ok, are we ready to call it a night?”

“It’s already night,” Neil replies, sleep-rough and contrary for the sake of being so. When he looks over, Wymack can see the lines of Matt’s shirt pressed into his cheek.

Wymack narrows his eyes at him. “Alright, you smarta—” the hopeful look on Matt’s face catches him quick, “ _Smarty pants_.” He makes a face at Matt when he deflates. “You know what I meant. I’m not gonna have you all complaining about your backs in the morning.”

“Who’s gonna be _up_ in the morning?” Dan yawns, but sits up agreeably, shoulders popping as she stretches.

“Me,” Wymack answers, and then is oddly touched by the idea of stepping over a floor full of sleepy foxes to make breakfast. It’s a stupid impulse, but most of his impulses involving… _his littles_ make him feel a little stupid. That’s the fun part, he guesses. “If you want to stay next time, we’ll have to get some mats or something.”

“You’d let us _stay_?” Neil says with genuine surprise. If Wymack didn’t know he was normally the Demigod of Attitude Problems, he’d wonder how anyone had the heart to kick him out of anywhere.

“I’d even give you blankets,” Wymack says with a crook of his mouth that makes Neil roll his eyes. “Come on, time to clean up.”

“ _Clean up, clean up, everybody, everywhere!_ ” Nicky and Dan sing instantly, the others groaning as they get to their feet.

By the time they’re done, aside from the brightly colored plasticware in the drying rack and the coloring books piled under his coffee table, the room looks basically back to normal.

Wymack claps once, letting out a sigh as he turns to the others. He loses his voice when he sees them looking at him expectantly, like they’re waiting for guidance. Even out on the court, he’s never seem that level of open attention on their faces. He doesn’t have a word for what he feels right then, but he knows he’d do just about anything to feel it again.

“Alright, how are we?” Wymack asks, “We feeling ok?”

There’s a bit of shuffling as they consider themselves and each other, but a few sleepy smiles are thrown his way, a few unbothered shrugs.

“We’re good,” Dan answers.

Kevin nods. “It was… good.”

Wymack doesn’t comment on the stumble, understands well enough how difficult it is to find words for this. “Ok. I’ll keep all this in mind for next time then,” he promises, warm when they all brighten at the prospect.

“And, uh, hey Coach?” Matt starts, a nervous air around him.

“Yeah, kiddo?” Wymack says because he might as well get used to it. The pleased twitch of Matt’s smile makes the chance worth it instantly.

Matt holds his arms out and tucks into Wymack the second he opens his. “Thanks,” he whispers, but before Wymack can respond, “Good night!”

“Sure was,” Wymack jokes and Matt laughs as he stands upright. “Night, Mattie.”

The others shift towards him all at once, hovering around him as he grabs each of them in turn before reaching past Renee to squeeze Neil’s shoulder, earning himself a little smile. “Text me when you’re there.”

When the door finally shuts behind them, the house feels almost woefully empty. But Wymack focuses on getting ready for bed, listening to his phone chime once— _a picture of Allison, Renee, Dan and Matt pajama’d and in the girl’s room_ —and then again— _a picture of Nicky smiling brightly and the back of Neil’s head as they enter their dorm._ Saving the pictures because… because he wants to, so sue him, he turns in for the night.

After, of course, setting an alarm for respectably late in the day so he can ask individually how they feel without waking them up.

//\\\

It takes a while for them to really ease into their little spaces, but eventually their play starts to really smooth out. Though, of course, as with most things, it’s never smooth enough to be boring or easy.

Well. Ok, somethings do get to be easy. Sometimes it’s as easy as dinner and hugs, as easy as drawing and paying attention to the little things they normally wouldn’t say. But there’re still little minefields Wymack is learning to navigate, to help _them_ navigate, but they’re piecing together maps as they go. And if they carry those maps with them when they’re Big, comfort each other and smile more, well, hell, that’s the whole point isn’t it? Wymack is proud of them, almost immediately, he really is.

It takes time, because all nights aren’t easy, but he’s getting to know his littles.

And they’re getting to know their caregiver.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These chapters vary wildly in length, I feel I should do something about that as a writer, but… alas.


	4. About Little Foxes: Allison

Allison likes everyone better when she’s little.

Around them, she smiles with her whole face. And not a just-for-the-cameras smile that blinds just about everyone that sees it, either. Her real smiles are just as bright, but so much sweeter they are hardly comparable. Dan always winds up smiling at her when they color together, Renee smiles when they roughhouse—a concept completely novel to Allison but something she _loves—_ and she pretends to let Allison win. Matt doesn’t know what to do with her when they watch cartoons and she asks him everything she can think of about the show. However, he also can’t help turning to laugh at her sometimes, the snorty little laugh she gets when she’s not thinking about it, but mostly he laughs _with_ her.

Wymack is holding back laughter when she goes to sit nearly _on_ Kevin who stares at her, confused, when he sees what she has in her hand. She points at Neil who she’s already gotten to without Kevin seeing, then back at Kevin’s face, “Can I?”

Kevin is all pink and confused, but he puts down his coloring book and turns to her. “Okay?”

She draws a heart with her lip liner, right around his queen. Kevin looks more than a little embarrassed by this, but gives her a shy quirk of his mouth that’s nearly a smile. She beams at him, proceeds to explain “ _his colors_ ” to him.

Her enthusiasm is only rivaled by Nicky and the two of them become thick as thieves rather quickly. She’s a touch over the top—dress-up for her seems less like a game and more like a performance—but as long as someone takes the time to pay attention to her, she’s as happy as can be.

One day, she’s so happy, she just starts to cry and can’t seem to stop herself.

Wymack has been listening to her story for a while now as she spins in her skirt, the fluffy casual kind he’s never seen her wear outside of little space. She’s not talking about _anything_ , but he’s looking at her, smirking as she gestures dramatically at Nicky who gestures right back. Neil is sitting on the floor by Wymack’s legs watching the two of them and Wymack thinks Neil notices first, because he stiffens.

Allison’s voice has taken on a weird tone, but she’s not looking at them now, staring straight over at the wall.

“Alli?” Wymack says and her face crinkles, before she seems to harden herself.

“I’ve been talking a long time,” she observes lightly.

“Is that a problem?” Wymack says carefully, “I like listening to you talk.”

The way that makes Allison’s lip quiver hurts to see, but Wymack understands it. She’s not a princess in an empty castle anymore, she’s not a decoration meant to be silent and pretty. She’s little and _real_ and loved and she’s not a little princess anymore.

“Coach? I’m not wasting your time, right?” she says, clutching the end of her skirt in her fists. The fact that she is willing to voice her fears means Wymack is more than willing to face them. No little girl of his is going to face her fears alone.

“No, Alli, never,” Wymack says and is on his feet and coming for her before she even starts to cry in earnest. He wraps her up instantly, “I’m right where I want to be.”

“Same-same,” Nicky says gently, tears in his throat as he presses against Allison’s back. He grips her shirt and tips his head against hers. “The Alli and Nicky show is my favorite part of playtime.” He kisses her hair when that just makes her choke out a sob.

Wymack has them sit down on the floor, nearly cradling Allison between them. “It’s ok, Alli,” he says, then thinks better of shushing her, “Cry if you need to, that’s a rule, ok?” he looks up at the others, at the concern on their faces, even as he strokes her arm. “We can cry all we need to.”

“I’m making a _mess_ ,” she blubbers, pulling her face away from the damp spot on Wymack shirt, scrubbing her eyes.

“Don’t worry about that,” Wymack tells her softly, “It’ll wash, it’s ok.”

Then, Neil is there, sitting in front of her and dabbing her face with his sleeve. “There, there?” he tries and it succeeds in making Allison laugh through her tears which was probably not actually the intent, but hey.

They spend the afternoon sitting close together and talking about colors, because Allison loves colors and they love Allison. The crazy part is, Allison doesn’t feel in anyway stifled by this.

Later, once she’s had some juice and calmed down, Wymack clucks his tongue and strokes her cheek with his thumb, muttering, “ _There’s my girl._ ”

Allison doesn’t feel stifled by that either.


	5. About Little Foxes: Neil & Matt

Neil likes Matt a lot.

That isn’t to say he doesn’t like the others, he does, and it’s more obvious now. Dan brings out a charming eagerness in him, his desire to have her talk to him about anything he’s done. Allison and Nicky are a lot, a whirlwind of motion around them, but he’s learning to spin with them, to let himself get swept up and squished between them without getting overwhelmed. (They’ll let him alone if he gets overwhelmed, he doesn’t even have to say it most times.) Rene brings out a shyness in him that Wymack can’t quite place, but sometimes when he starts to look lost, she’ll hold his hands and talk quietly to him. Wymack would venture they also get to bond over their missing little monster.

But still, Matt has earned a special place in Neil’s heart because he is big but not _Big_ , because he’s only a little _less little_ than Neil and likes Neil, too.

Matt likes to laugh, doesn’t hesitate to sit down for cartoons. There’s an easiness to his little space, to the way he just wants to be made to smile and make people smile in return. Neil doesn’t smile all that often, but Matt has come to recognize the light in his eyes that would be a smile on anyone else. Matt covets that nearly as much as he covets Dan’s laughter and hugs and nose-kisses. It’s disorienting for Neil to know that, for him to be placed nearly on level with Dan in Matt’s head, but the swoop it puts in his stomach is not the scary kind.

Mostly, Neil likes Matt because he doesn’t scare him, not even a little bit.

The first time he excitedly holds out his arms to Neil, Neil folds his arms against his own body, reflexively. But before Matt can put his arms down, Neil tips into his chest, nearly face first. His arms are trapped between them and Matt hugs him so tightly Neil aches a little, but he also feels very… safe. He thinks this is what little brothers should feel like.

(Neil has never once had the experience of being a little brother, but now he only ever associates it with Matt. Being a son is complicated, will always exist with a backdrop of pain and fear, of _Nathaniel_. But being a little brother is Matt’s laughter and Matt’s hugs and just _Matt_ with all the feelings he brings. Being a little brother is Good, no question, no hesitation.)

“Matt,” Neil says into Matt’s chest, then corrects, “ _Mattie_.”

“Neeeil,” Matt sings, laughing like it’s a joke or maybe just like it makes him happy, like _Neil_ makes him happy.

Neil turns one of his hands so that it’s holding Matt’s t-shirt, like he might step away when Neil whispers, wonderingly, “Mattie, I think you’re my best friend.”

Wymack thinks this might be the first time Neil has ever had anything close to that.

After a freeze in which Matt’s whole face lights up, eyes shining damp, he picks Neil up and spins. He laughs through the urge to cry, because being a big brother makes him feel so much more loved than being an only son ever had. “Good! You’re my best friend, too!”

After that, Neil drifts easily into Matt’s orbit, especially when he realizes his presence makes Matt smile.


	6. In Which Andrew and Wymack Have a Chat

“What do you get out of this?” Andrew asks and Wymack does his level best not to shit himself.

“ _Jesus Chr—_ ” Wymack flips on a light, whirling around to face the _little shithead_ at his kitchen table. “Do you have a grudge against knocking? It’s four in the fucking—”

“I asked you a question,” Andrew cuts in coldly and Wymack glares at him. It’s about as effective as it usually is which is to say not at all.

Wymack considers asking what he’s talking about just to be a dick, but there are Disney plates drying on his counter and cups of crayons on his coffee table. It’s also well past the witching hour and he doesn’t want to draw out a fight.

It doesn’t _seem_ like Andrew particularly came here to fight, but you never can tell with him. He’s an instigator at heart and always ready to start swinging.

Rubbing a hand over his head, Wymack posts up against the wall. “I want the same thing you do.”

“I want nothing,” Andrew says instantly.

“So do I,” Wymack replies with a shrug, with about the same level of honesty. “I’m doing it because it’s… good,” he stumbles over the last word because it’s _right_ , but it still isn’t what he means. “It _feels_ good taking care of them, knowing that at least here, I can make sure nothing hurts them,” he eyes Andrew, “hurts _you_.”

There are hornet’s nests that look friendlier than Andrew does in that moment. “Little late for that.”

That may be the most direct way Andrew has ever admitted to being hurt and it _guts_ , it hits Wymack right where he intended it to.

Wymack flares hot, angry at that jab, but not exactly angry with Andrew. “You got a time machine I don’t know about? Sign me up, I’ll go back and kick the shit out of any fucker who ever even looked at you wrong.” _I’ll get to Drake before he gets to you._ He swallows the name back, though, will never say it in the context of this.

“I can’t change what happened to any of you,” Wymack continues. “I’d pay in blood if I could, but I can’t. This is where we are, this is what we got. Some people just want to do nice things, Minyard, some people _like_ that.”

“Being nice doesn’t get you anything,” Andrew says.

Wymack doesn’t doubt for a single second that Andrew being nice and Andrew being hurt are directly correlated in his head. “Maybe not for you, not now, but—”

“But you can fix me?” Andrew says so blankly there seems to be accusation hanging heavily on every word.

“But it does for _me_ ,” Wymack finishes firmly. The last time he tried to explain this, there weren’t so many feelings, weren’t any _memories_ involved, but now it feels almost raw to try and say this aloud.

There are little foxes running around his head that he wants to protect and he has to remind himself that Andrew isn’t something he needs to protect them from. Andrew is one of them, too, he’s just lost. Feral.

Suddenly, his conversation with Abby comes back to him.

“Look, I don’t have a complex answer to give you, alright? I want shit that seems obvious, seems like _nothing_ ,” Wymack says. “It seems like _nothing_ to me because, _of course_ , if I were taking care of a little kid I would feed them and make sure they rested somewhere _safe_. Of course, I’d give you nice things to do, sit down and do them with you, try to make you happy. Of course, I wouldn’t hurt you for crying, I’d let you cry, I’d listen to what you were crying about, _Andrew_ …” He stops himself, getting inordinately worked up, a weird clash of anger and heartache making him wipe a hand down his face.

It seems so _obvious_ , but—he thinks of Matt just wanting to be hugged, Neil learning not to flinch, Allison sobbing in his arms because he just _listened_ _to her_ for more than five minutes. How many of them got what they _obviously_ should have gotten as children? They likely wouldn’t be on his team if they had.

Wymack’s “nothing” means a whole awful lot to them, which makes it mean a lot to him, too.

 “Promises, promises,” Andrew says mockingly, “You’re balancing on—”

“A thin line, yeah, yeah, but you know what? My hip’s acting up and my shoes are probably too big for thin lines anyway,” Wymack replies gruffly, sighing. “You asked me what I get out of this. That’s it,” he motions vaguely, “I get to do all that. _That_ means something to me.”

Andrew plays with the end of his arm band and Wymack unconsciously looks for the outline of a knife. “So to mean something to you all we have to do is—?”

“You assholes already mean something to me, we’ve crossed that fucking bridge,” Wymack mutters, then shakes his head. “You don’t _have_ to do anything, even if you do show up. If you get something out of skulking in the corner the whole time,” he nods over, “take the corner, then, it’s yours. This is about everyone getting something nice, Andrew. No strings, no snares.”

Andrew doesn’t say anything at first, then, just watches him. “I’ll kill you,” he says again, but the cold sharpness of it has dulled some from the first time. It doesn’t hit like a threat.

“No, you won’t,” Wymack assures him. Then, he turns to get the water he got up for in the first place and starts back for his bedroom. “Stay quiet or fuck off, Minyard.”

Andrew decides to do neither of those things for long enough that Wymack is about to get back up, before he hears his front door click shut.

Sleep comes easier than he’d expected.


	7. Andrew’s First Little Day

Andrew shows up without warning or fanfare. Even for the unimpressed look on his face, Wymack thinks he can see the way he’d braced for it, had been prepared to aggressively ignore everyone.

Wymack had gotten to them first, though.

“ _No, Andrew isn’t really shaken by anything anymore, but this is the space where he doesn’t have to worry about anything trying, right?_ ” Wymack had said to them quietly, the night after Andrew had spoken to him. “ _We’re all being gentle with each other. Let him feel that out before you try to involve him, ok?_ ”

There were a lot of solemn nods, Nicky looking teary and hopeful, Neil looking like he thought this would never even be an issue and it made him uncomfortably sad. He’d spent that whole day pressed between Matt and Nicky, trying to absorb their warmth, though he had come to squeeze Wymack’s hand as though to say “ _Thanks for thinking of him_ ” before he left.

Now, though, with Andrew standing in the doorway, Neil’s eyes are blown wide with shock and adoration. Wymack… well, he can’t feel proud of himself, he didn’t _do_ this. But he is happy to see that maybe, _maybe_ Neil can start to understand hope isn’t always mislabeled idiocy. Wymack is _definitely_ , proud of Andrew, though.

“Come on in,” Wymack says redundantly, because Andrew is already inside. Nicky is already on the brink of tears, about to buzz out of his skin, but he bites his lip and keeps quiet. Wymack reaches out, lets Nicky grab his hand even as he sits back down to focus on the puzzle he was doing with Kevin. Kevin doesn’t seem to notice, his eyes glued to Andrew in disbelief. “There’s juice on the counter if you want it.”

Andrew does not want it, it seems.

They all watch him as he crosses the room, ignoring them all, except for briefly letting Neil catch his eyes. He wedges his back in the corner and gazes out at them blankly. The others turn away eventually, finding their strides again even if they keep glancing over to the corner. They want to drag him in, Wymack can tell, somewhat amazed; they’re looking for him like he hasn’t shut them out before and…

Well, Wymack supposes he _hasn’t_ , not like this. Not when they’re little and he’s maybe willing to play at something like it, too. Really, he opened a door by coming in today, that’s decidedly _not_ shutting them out. His presence means a lot and Wymack hopes one day he’ll realize that.

Andrew doesn’t speak the whole time, but the fact that he’s there _the whole time_ is a miracle in and of itself.

Wymack will take whatever miracles he can get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is so short, I'm breaking the rules and posting two chapters today. [puts on cool guy shades] And there's nothing you can do to stop me!


	8. About Little Foxes: Renee (& Andrew)

Renee draws all day long if they let her.

Wymack winds up running out of art paper before he runs out of coloring books.

(Before he can get more, Renee and Neil turn up at his door with an armful of new easel pads and a roll of kraft paper, Andrew trailing disinterestedly behind them. “ _Aren’t I supposed to do this for you?_ ” Wymack had asked, stroking the pastels of her hair as she smiled at him. “ _Big Renee got it for me, Coach! She looks out for me, too,_ ” she’d replied and something in Wymack he hadn’t realized was tight, loosened.)

She draws her friends and foxes and other woodland creatures and exy gear and her Coach and sometimes she draws the people who hurt her. On those days, her smile is far off and Allison doesn’t leave her side until she hands those drawings to Andrew. Wymack watches Andrew scribble over them in black and shred the mess by hand. He picks up the pieces and throws them up, staring at Renee when she finally laughs as they float down around her.

It seems like Wymack does something accidentally significant one night when he decides to bake cookies (fuck’s sake, he _is_ turning into one of Those Dads) and let them pipe their own icing. Matt and Allison are easily excited as soon as they walk in and smell sweets, rattling off stories about their favorite desserts. Dan and Kevin look at each other for a moment as though silently agreeing that _one_ cookie won’t break their routine.

Wymack pauses where he’s about to put another sheet in the oven when he notices Andrew has frozen in the doorway. There’s something in his face that Neil must recognize, because he’s standing like he might step back out into the hall. Even slamming haphazardly through his own memory, Wymack can’t come up with why _cookie night_ would be the thing to make Andrew shut down, but—

“What’s baking?” Renee says, holding Nicky’s hand because they may not know whatever Neil knows, but they do know Andrew. Her tone is sweet, sisterly, but she’s looking at Wymack confidently, like he’s already answered the question right.

So Wymack doesn’t think himself into a knot. “Sugar cookies,” he answers. “You like drawing so much, figure I wanna see how you feel about icing. Maybe you’ll be in for a career change.”

“I can’t bake,” Renee laughs, tugging Nicky forward, “but I would like to try decorating.”

“I-I can’t bake either,” Nicky agrees, latches onto her tone as tightly as he does her hand. “But I bet I could learn! Can I help next time?”

“Didn’t Erik ban you from cooking?” Dan says with a sly smile, that succeeds in making Nicky’s dramatics overtake his nerves. He stomps his foot, pouting.

“That was one time!”

In the background, Wymack hears Neil’s voice, low enough to understand it wasn’t meant for them. He doesn’t hear Andrew respond, but he doesn’t turn around to see his face either. When the door clicks shut and the footsteps get closer, not further away, Wymack holds out Neil’s straw cup.

“Thanks,” Neil takes it, then stops halfway through the motion to move away. He takes a step forward that puts him in Wymack’s space, bumping his forehead against Wymack’s shoulder before scurrying away to Matt’s side.

Wymack smiles at him, glances up to see Andrew standing near the kitchen. “I’ll get you some juice,” he tells him, “Cookies will be a bit, though.” He’s surprised Andrew stays stationary long enough for him to actually fill the cup, more surprised when Andrew actually accepts it. Though, he does eye it rather skeptically and Wymack can’t tell if it’s because of the fox prints around the container or that it’s practically a _sippy cup_ or that it’s not alcohol. “Make yourself comfortable.”

Andrew drifts away, likely towards his corner, but Nicky waves at him and he stops.

“Hi-hi,” Nicky says in a little voice, even though he just came in with him. He just smiles when Andrew looks at him, unmoved, but Wymack can see that it’s not strained. “I’m gonna make you a cookie,” he tells him, then turns back around without waiting for a response. “Coach, did you get sprinkles? Or— _ooh_ , or colored sugar?”

“You want sugar _and_ icing?” Kevin says aghast, he makes a face when Nicky sticks his tongue out at him.

Wymack ruffles Kevin’s hair, earning the same pout—Kevin _hates_ that everyone has agreed it’s a pout—that it always does. “I’ll get you oatmeal raisin next time, ok, little old man?” He chuckles when Kevin huffs, pushing his hand away.

As it turns out, Renee is actually good at icing art, too, though Kevin and Allison seem to be trying to one up each other with allusions to artistic renderings. The others mostly stick to simple patterns as an excuse to get the icing on the cookies and the cookies into their mouths. As promised, though, Nicky makes Andrew a cookie of… well, it looks like a sugar encrusted alien or something, Wymack can’t really be sure. He also isn’t too worried about it because Nicky is through the roof that Andrew takes it.

Andrew doesn’t make his own, but when they all spread out to watch cartoons after, he eats the three suspiciously over-sugared cookies Neil had made while Wymack pretended not to notice.

Wymack also pretends not to notice Kevin hesitate five times before Andrew just _looks_ at him. Kevin sits down with him like he’d been given an invitation.

In Andrew-Speak it probably was.


	9. In Which Aaron Yells Until He Cries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Emotionally this got a little heavy with references to Aaron’s past, so warning for that, I guess?

Aaron looks ready to pick ten fights and Wymack wants exactly none of them.

Still, he sighs and puts down his notes because hell if Aaron is going to let him focus on anything but his impending tantrum. He props himself against the top of his desk for the long haul, “Out with it, Minyard.”

“I don’t give a fuck what you do,” Aaron says exactly like it’s not even a little bit true, “if you wanna play house with these rejects, fine, but you keep it _the fuck away from me_.”

Wymack arches an eyebrow. “Last I checked I invited you _once_.”

“And then you turned the whole team against me!” Aaron shouts, but barrels on before Wymack can even _begin_ to tackle that, grinds out the greatest offence, “You set _Andrew_ against me!!”

That gives Wymack pause. To the best of his knowledge, only the monsters even put in any real effort to speak to Aaron and that excluded Neil. He can’t see Kevin bridging that gap, though maybe Nicky would _try_ and even _still_ —

“Aaron, there isn’t a single fucking thing anyone could do to pit Andrew against you, what the hell are you talking about?”

“Oh, really!” Aaron scoffs, the exact image of indignant rage. “So you had nothing to do with the fact that we haven’t been clubbing in _weeks_? Like all of a sudden everyone has ‘ _un-grown_ ’ out of it and just wants to act like _fucking children_? You had nothing to do with how,” the tone of his voice turns to something like disgust, “ _Josten_ is practically the team _slut_ , like nobody can keep their _fucking_ hands off him? I went to borrow a movie from Matt and Josten was there in his _lap_ and Andrew didn’t even say anything, he fucking _stayed with them!!_ Dan invited us and _he stayed!_ ”

…Well, that’s not the sort of ‘against me’ Wymack had been expecting, but thinking about it, it’s not a shocker Aaron would see it that way. Colombia has always been their thing, the incident with Matt aside. Wymack had known Kevin had been drinking less, he’d even known Neil had gotten closer to the other foxes, so it’s not a shock Andrew’s gotten tugged along. The fact that it’s willingly is a bit of a pleasant surprise, because he’d _hoped_ but it’s hard to tell with Andrew. Still, that brings him back to the angrier Minyard.

“Socializing?” Wymack clarifies, “ _That’s_ what put a wasp in your jersey?”

“We don’t socialize with them,” Aaron spits and the world tilts wildly as Wymack hears Abby’s teasing voice, “ _You can’t sit with us._ ”

“ _You_ don’t, is that the real problem?” Wymack asks.

“ _No, I don’t!_ ” Aaron exclaims like it should be obvious and it is. “Andrew is a part of the deal, nobody else, but now they keep _showing up_ , he keeps _letting them_.”

It’d never exactly been a secret that Aaron was using Andrew as an excuse to stay away from the rest of the foxes, but the knowledge that Andrew wasn’t going to be that wall anymore was clearly upsetting him. “They’re your _teammates_ , Aaron _._ ”

“On the court, at _best!_ ” Aaron shrieks, “I don’t need him dragging them into our space—”

“You don’t want him to have _friends?_ ” Wymack cuts in, because that’s too low to be the genuine issue, in spite of how it comes across. This has got to be about something deeper than Aaron being vindictive.

“Andrew doesn’t have _friends_ ,” Aaron retorts, “And what good would _they_ do as friends? A team full of assholes and junkies and _criminals_?” He laughs, a caustic and nearly hysterical sound, “It’s bad enough I’m on this goddamn team, it’s bad enough Andrew—” He veers sharply away from whatever he was about to say, “I didn’t even want to be on this team.”

“Shocker,” Wymack grumbles, annoyed but not with hurt feelings. He knows what people think of this team, he knows Aaron is dead-set on agreeing with them. He might even be half right.

“I’m trying to make something of myself. None of this, none of _them_ are going to make that easier,” Aaron says. “I’m not—”

“An ex-junkie with a chip on his shoulder?” Wymack carefully doesn’t mention the murder charge. It doesn’t matter, Aaron’s face lights with new rage anyway.

“ _Fuck you,_ you don’t know anything about me, that doesn’t _make_ me.”

“But it makes them?”

“That’s—”

“You’re going to be a doctor, Aaron.” Wymack says, visibly throwing Aaron for enough of a loop that it silences him. “I believe that, I really do. You’ll probably be a damn great one. But you gotta clear something up for me first.”

“What?” Aaron snaps, already guarded.

Wymack is trying to choose his words carefully, but really, there’s nothing he can say that isn’t going to set Aaron off, is there? Wymack is the bad guy here, almost _everyone_ is the bad guy in Aaron’s story. Katelyn has saved him more than he will ever talk about, but there are things that are all Aaron, ways he saved himself. Wymack can’t really see Aaron in pediatrics, but even after all of it, or maybe because of it, he can’t imagine Aaron ignoring a child if he even saw _a hint_ of what he must’ve carried in his own eyes for years. Doctors save lives, of course; so do regular adults who aren’t willing to turn a blind eye.

“You’d wanna help kids like you, right?” Wymack asks, “Kids who got the short end of it, and got fucked over again and again for it?”

“I want to study neurology,” Aaron dodges, frames it to look like a neutral answer.

Wymack is not fooled. “Is that a no?”

Aaron glares at him.

“In your life, you want to be the kind of person you needed when you were younger, right? The kind of person you _both_ needed?”

“Fine, _yes!_ What’s your fucking point?”

“How are you gonna do that if you keep shitting on people for the little ways they heal themselves?”

Aaron’s face goes flush with fury, embarrassment maybe, too. Wymack reacts to him turning to leave before he consciously has the thought. “Get out of my way,” Aaron hisses, low and savage.

“You can’t save anyone if you go around thinking you’re too good for everyone and everything,” Wymack says, doesn’t move from the doorway. “You also can’t do it if you refuse to let people help you.”

“ _I don’t need help!_ ”

Wymack fights back a sigh because Aaron doesn’t even sound like he knows he’s lying. “Aaron, you’re about to be a _doctor._ You mean to tell me you think walking around pissed all the time, shoving everyone away is healthy?”

“Oh, what the fuck do you know? _What do you know?_ This is all about him!”

They’re lives are so fucking tangled up Wymack can’t imagine there’s anyway this _doesn’t_ involve Andrew, but asks anyway, “What about him?”

“ _Everything!_ ” Aaron screams, “The only reason I’m on this team, the only reason you care! It’s just because I’m _his_! I’m his brother, I’m his _problem_ and you decided he was yours! This has never been about me, _nothing is about me!_ ”

Wymack wants to call Betsy so strongly his hand is already twitching for his phone. The image of him sitting in her office in stony silence all this time suddenly _hurts_ because this yelling, _this_ isn’t even half of it. Aaron has been the center of Andrew’s world since they collided, Neil and Katelyn were nearly betrayals as much as they were allowances. Still, Aaron hasn’t once tried to reach out for anyone else, before or since, has pointedly shoved everyone away.

That doesn’t mean Wymack isn’t suddenly choked with the idea that maybe he should’ve tried reaching out for Aaron more than he has. No, Aaron’s grief, his pain is not Wymack’s responsibility, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t _care_ about it _, Jesus…_

“Aaron, I’m talking to _you_ right now,” Wymack says lowly. “Just you. Not Andrew, not anyone else, this is about _you_. What do _you_ want? Not because you used to be a junkie or you’re a fox. Not because of Andrew or your mom, not even because of Katelyn, _you_. What do _you_ want?”

“I don’t _want anything!_ ” he shouts and those words catch up to him almost immediately. He blanches, taking a step back and putting his hands over his face. “ _Shit!_ ” he probably means to yell, but his voice shatters around the word, lips wobbling before his sneer thins them out.

“Everyone wants something,” Wymack says, because this is a different conversation and Aaron is not Andrew. “You’re allowed to want things, Aaron.”

“This is not what I came here for,” Aaron says, hands still over his face, voice an unsteady mess.

“No, but you’re getting it, kid.” Wymack takes a step towards him. “You can’t keep going like this. It doesn’t have to be me or Andrew or any of the foxes, but it’s gotta be somebody.” Then he pauses, adds, “Several somebodies. One person can’t give you everything you want.”

“Don’t—”

“Especially if you don’t know what you want.”

“ _I want my mom!_ ” Aaron screams, startling the both of them. Suddenly, his eyes are brimming even as he comes at Wymack, shoves him. “Is that what you want to hear? I want my _mom_. I didn’t want her dead, I just wanted her to _stop_ —” He growls out an uncontrolled sound, punches the wall before Wymack grabs his wrist, “God _damn it!_ ”

It’s crossed Wymack’s mind that Andrew wouldn’t have seen what he did as _robbing_ Aaron, has to wonder if he’d have done things differently if he had. He doesn’t have the time or energy to consider that, though. For once, it seems, someone needs to focus on _this_ Minyard.

“What should she have done?” Wymack asks, holding Aaron’s fist out away from the wall.

“What?” Aaron says, or at least Wymack thinks that’s what he says, it’s lost in the way he’s heaving for breath.

“Your mom,” Wymack answers, because being angry at her on Aaron’s behalf is _so_ easy, but he can’t focus on his anger right now. He’s got to focus on a grieving kid with nobody who really shares his grief. “What should she have done different, Aaron? What do you want?”

“ _No._ ” Aaron snarls and Wymack would close the door if he could spare the attention. “You don’t get to ask that, you _fucker_ , you don’t get to use her against me.”

“That’s not what I’m trying to do,” Wymack replies. “Is it so hard to believe that I _actually_ care?” When Aaron doesn’t answer, Wymack sighs. Then he _does_ pull out his phone, opens his emergency contact list. He puts the phone in Aaron’s hand hoping at the very least that he doesn’t throw it across the room. His face says he’s considering it.

 “I can’t give you your mom back, nobody can,” he lowers his voice when Aaron winces, clenches his fist around Wymack’s phone. “But you don’t have to let everything you never got from her tear you apart, keep you from your own life.”

For a long moment, Aaron just glares at him, hardly daring to blink less he cross from teary eyed to crying. Then his gaze turns almost accusingly to the phone and he sucks in a sharp breath. Then another before he speaks, “I don’t speak to _shrinks._ ”

Wymack shakes his head at that. “You wanna maintain your reputation of icing her out? Fine. Use my phone, sit in my office. Nobody will know you called her, but Aaron…” The earnestness he can hear in his own voice is unnervingly raw when he breathes, “Please call her.”

When Aaron doesn’t say anything immediately, Wymack turns to grab the stack of papers he’d been about to work on from his desk. He leaves the office without looking behind him, closing the door and not really having to _not_ think about what Aaron could get up to in there. There are too many things going on in Aaron’s head for him to worry about anything in the room.

A half-hour passes, then an hour, with Wymack taking notes on exy tapes and reaching for his phone a half dozen times before he remembers where it is. He pauses the game when Aaron comes to stand stiffly in the doorway, pink about the eyes. They’re both at a bit of a loss, it seems, the silence only broken when Aaron comes to put Wymack’s phone in his hand.

“Someone texted you,” Aaron tells him, quiet and strained, “I didn’t look to see who.”

Wymack nods, shaking his phone at Aaron, “Thanks.” He doesn’t ask if Aaron called, it’s written all over his face. It’s in the strange air of defeat trying to make peace with the relief on his shoulders.

“She told me—” Aaron starts to say, much to Wymack’s surprise, but stops himself before Wymack can remind him he doesn’t have to say. He swallows, unnerved, absently touches his own pocket, “I texted Katelyn. I’m going to stay with her tonight.”

“Probably a good move,” Wymack allows, can see that admission for what it is. Betsy suggested he not be alone and he took that into advisement. Pride and relief have made a mess of Wymack’s heart, but he keeps his face carefully neutral.

The silence that follows is so unsettled, Wymack doesn’t know why Aaron hasn’t already made a break for it. He can’t get a good read on him past the obvious discomfort. Then, abruptly, Aaron has joined him on the couch. Wymack almost lets this happen without comment, too, almost unmutes the TV just to fill the space, but…

“…Aaron?”

Aaron raises his eyebrows, doesn’t look over. “Wymack.”

Wymack eyes him carefully. “Are you okay?” he asks, thinks he knows the answer.

The question gets him a series of nods, each one seeming to make Aaron’s face fall further towards breaking until he shakes his head.

“I’m _tired_ ,” Aaron confesses, puts his face in his hands and loses his battle with his composure.

“Ok, kid,” Wymack says, reaches for his shoulder, squeezing when he isn’t shoved away.

“I am _so goddamn tired,_ ” he cries and seems at once so much older and younger than he actually is. Nearly two decades of hell and heartbreak, of course he’s exhausted.

Aaron cries and Wymack just lets him. No pinches or prods, no slaps or shushes, Wymack leaves his hand on Aaron’s back as he sobs through clenched teeth.

For the first time in _many_ years, Aaron doesn’t stop crying just because someone made him.

//\\\

Later, when Wymack is laying with his head on Abby’s stomach and her hands rubbing the back of his neck, he finds he has two messages on his phone.

One from Aaron, who is in a very similar position: _I’ll try._

Wymack doesn’t ask about what: _Okay._

One from Betsy, which seems almost redundant given the first: _You’ve already made a difference, David._

Wymack feels something tight in his throat. Abby must see it on his face, too, because she slides down to wrap her arms around his neck after he replies:

_I’m trying._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> …Oh, I don’t know if I have a good handle on Aaron’s voice, this chapter gave me _the business_ trying to work it out. He got so weepy, but… I feel like, in general, anyone carrying that much anger is eventually going to have it cave into sadness. Stages of grief and all that that jazz. I think Aaron deserves the chance to just cry it out, to let someone hold him through that. I don’t know if that’s too OOC to be believable, but I think I like the way this went. Hm… Regardless, comments are welcome as always!


	10. Aaron’s First Little Day

Aaron looks wound tight enough to snap when he turns up, the tone in the room changing as soon as everyone registers who’s at the door.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Wymack murmurs softly, “If you can’t figure out how to be nice, try being quiet for a while. Ask anything you need to.”

“I get it,” Aaron whispers sharply, but the skittish look in his eyes as he tugs on his sweatpants makes him wonder if Aaron can really ease into this, if this sort of play would even _do_ anything for him. Doesn’t hurt to remind him, though.

“This is about _relaxing_ ,” Wymack says with a little quirk of his mouth when Aaron glares at him. He steps aside to let him in. “Take a hint.”

Oddly enough, everyone seems less sure of what to do with Aaron than they had with Andrew. Having Neil and Renee as a filter might’ve made things easier than Wymack had realized.

“Hi-hi,” Nicky says first, waving with stickers on his hands—and face, Wymack missed that happening—courtesy of Renee. He looks genuinely thrilled to see his cousin, “I’m glad you came!”

“Thanks…” Aaron says, awkwardly, clearly at a loss.

Nobody else voices that sentiment quite so bluntly, but Renee smiles, making the star sticker on her cheek lift and Dan gives him a little wave, too. He looks them all over, but his gaze eventually falls on Andrew and stays there.

Generally speaking, Andrew still spends a lot of time in the corner, but he drifts out occasionally, allows the others to drift closer. It’s a glacially slow, mostly wordless drift, but the fact that it’s happening at all is _significant._ Andrew watched _Jimmy Neutron_ with Matt and Neil once, looked at Dan like—even if he didn’t particularly care—he was _awake and present_ through her excited explanation of a book she’s reading. He’ll eat just about any of the sweets Nicky cares to bring him, which means Nicky is constantly bringing him sweets. Of course, Renee and Neil are the most likely to venture over to him uninvited, but Kevin will sometimes offer him a handful of play-doh that they’ll work into shapes in silence.

Today, though, he’s with Allison putting together the most _bullshit, complicated_ puzzle Wymack could find, too many colors and too many pieces.

Neil looks like he maybe wants to go to Andrew, who hasn’t even looked up since Aaron walked in, but decides better of it. When he stands by Matt, twisting his sleeves, Matt doesn’t hesitate to open his arms, questioning. The embarrassed look on Neil’s face is as endearing as it always is, when he nods and lets Matt tug him down into his lap to watch _The Electric Company._ Wymack steps between Aaron and the rest of the room before anyone can see the horror— _disgust_ , maybe even—twist his face.

It’s a warning Aaron doesn’t appreciate.

“We’re relaxing and being nice,” Wymack reminds him firmly, “A buncha little kids taking it easy.” He squeezes Aaron’s shoulder until it sags slightly, “Come _play_ , Aaron.”

Before Aaron can get the chance to respond, Wymack crosses over to sit back down between Allison and Dan, picking up the _I Spy_ book he’d left to answer the door.

It takes Aaron a bit to figure out what to do with himself. There’s something about the falsely casual way Allison shifts to the side, making space for him, that makes him feel too _known_. He obviously wants to latch onto Andrew, but Andrew isn’t offering that right now, leaving Aaron to decide for himself.

Eventually, he moves over to where Kevin is coloring, both of them ignoring the steadily growing flush on Kevin’s cheeks.

“There’s a science one,” Kevin mumbles so quick and soft Aaron nearly misses it.

Even when he parses the words, he still looks confused, “ _What?_ ”

If Kevin blushes any harder, he’s going to pop something. “Coach got a science one,” he explains, putting down his crayon and riffling through the stack to find it. He hands it over without looking. “It starts with cells. Ends in space.”

“Oh,” Aaron says, looking down at it, then over at Wymack who nods, turning back to his own book. “Thanks,” he says to Kevin. He spends more time leafing through the pictures than actually coloring it, but eventually Kevin hands him a crayon, actually looking up at Aaron. The awkwardness has ebbed only slightly, leaving Kevin looking young and vulnerable. It startles Aaron, Wymack can see that in the set of his shoulders, both this offering and Kevin’s willingness to be seen this way. He accepts it and then, very quietly, asks “What are you coloring?”

Aaron still looks uncomfortable, but his anger seems generalized, directionless. He colors mostly peacefully with Kevin. Wymack smiles as he watches Aaron put a conscious effort into not snapping off on Nicky who is steadfastly ignoring his “ _fuck off_ ” vibes, offering stickers and near constant companionship. Nicky has told Wymack about his plan with Neil and the phone, and this seems to have a similar effect. Aaron is still grouchy, but it’s with none of his usual overt hostility. Just a different type of fussy little kid, another one to complete Wymack’s set. And that _is_ what it feels like.

Even with the air still shifting to adjust around their newest member, it already feels _right_ having all his foxes in one place. He’s feeling touched about it admittedly. Not like he tears up or anything, but as he makes his rounds and makes dinner, he’s definitely…

“What are we watching?” Wymack asks, doling out bowls of spaghetti.

“Bill Nye!” Dan suggests excitedly, beaming when Aaron looks over at her, surprised and embarrassingly grateful.

“Who’s Bill Nye?” Neil asks and Nicky makes a distressed sound.

“Coach, _please!_ ”

“Alright, keep your shirt on!” Wymack replies. “Food first!”

Suddenly having half the room chanting “ _Bill! Bill! Bill!_ ” is a little disconcerting, but mostly amusing; Wymack’s neighbors have surely heard worse. They all also seem invested in the show which gives Wymack the chance to subtly look them over. All bright eyed, all at ease, even Aaron where he’s seated beside Andrew, finally, and twirling his noodles as he watches Bill’s demonstration with fondness. Andrew looks more relaxed than he ever has, like Aaron just being there, in his line of sight, settles something in his mind.

Basically?

Wymack is feeling really damn good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HC that Andrew gets bored too easy for easy puzzles and Allison likes watching chaotic colors fold into a picture, the more colors the better.
> 
> Also, that last line is not foreboding, it’s not for dramatic foreshadowing! Nothing goes wrong, I promise. Wymack just deserves to feel good, too. So do you! I hope you have a good day!


	11. About Little Foxes: Dan

Dan winds up throwing herself into little space with the sort of recklessness she almost never shows anywhere else.

Being team captain, being captain of a team of _Foxes_ is basically a war of attrition where nobody is really willing to play fair. It’s a continual exercise in control and composure; standing ramrod straight, it’s being sharp and unyielding. It’s nothing like Wymack’s cheery, bright-eyed little girl, eager to talk to and smile for everyone around her. When she’s little, Dan is just as genuine and charming, but so unabashedly excitable it’d be very, very difficult not to love her.

So it’s wonderful nobody wants to even try.

Matt has always taken on a boyish quality when Dan is affectionate with him, but now it’s like she can’t get enough of it, of him. Sitting on him, petting his face and talking about how warm his cheeks get, squealing when he twirls her. Sometimes watching them makes Wymack ache with the urge to call Abby, just to hear her voice, but that makes him glad, too. His foxes deserve nothing less than someone that lights them up the way Dan and Matt light up each other.

Of course, Dan is set on brightening everyone’s day if she can.

Allison and Nicky love to crowd her, talking at her excitedly as she listens to them like it’s the most interesting story she’s ever heard, they pile together and talk and talk.

“I feel like I missed you,” Dan says to Nicky, and he looks touched and happy and like he knows exactly what she means. He tugs her into a hug, lanky with arms and legs seemingly everywhere, “I missed you, too.”

Dan bends over to look at Neil drawing (or the cookie he’s made or the stickers on his hands or the paint on his face) and exclaims, “Pretty!” Her face bright and honest, overjoyed when Neil looks up at her shyly, sometimes even smiles.

(She likes that, likes just saying things without people telling her it’s obvious. She likes being nice to them, because she doesn’t think nearly enough people have been. It feels like being on the honor list, like making _Court_ when she makes them smile at her.)

Andrew doesn’t smile at her, but he listens to her which has happened pretty much never before. He hands her the things she asks for near him which… ok, she doesn’t start _intentionally_ leaving things near him, but she may want the toys closest to him more often than not. Aaron doesn’t really smile at her either, but sometimes he’ll blush when she compliments him, twisting his foot on the ground as he mumbles, “Thanks, Dani.”

There’s no butting heads between Dan and Kevin here, like being little is the equalizer they needed all along. They are equally happy to be a little in Wymack’s care. Except that Kevin is still nursing a case of embarrassed shyness that Dan is determined to drag him out of, sometimes literally. Kevin doesn’t touch very often, but Wymack has noticed the change—Dan only drags Kevin around when he reaches for her, but it’s rare that he _won’t_ reach for her. He knows she’ll take his hand.

Dan is a big sister and she loves it, loves being able to look out for people without feeling _responsible_ for them.

“Thanks, Cap,” Wymack says fondly, when she brings over the cups to be washed. He turns to rub her head, then down her back when she smiles at him, tickled. “I think that makes you the pirate.”

Dan laughs at him, silly and bemused. “Aye aye, matey?”

“More aggressive!” Allison shouts.

“ _Arg!!!_ ” Dan shouts back and Allison laughs.

Dan the Pirate Captain winds up sticking through more playtimes than Wymack had really meant for it to, but the delight on her face when he shows her how to make paper pirate hats removes any room for doubt.


	12. In Which Abby Gets The Foxes Jammies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting a little early because I have to get up early tomorrow! [channeling get-that-job vibes]

Wymack is looking at adult onesie pajamas online feeling like a _goddamn_ fool, but also, unable to stop himself and it is 100% Abby’s fault.

And, ok, he can’t really be _mad_ at her, but mild annoyance is his general state of being and makes her laugh at him, so really, no harm no foul. Because, _ok, really_ , they’re both so damn giddy?

Every day it seems the team is getting more unified, even when they’re not little, which means that they’re _playing like a unit._ Wymack is so happy he could burst. Abby isn’t far behind him because nobody has gotten into a fight in months—and the Raven goalie left his box to start that one, she doesn’t count it—and she just loves seeing Wymack walking around with this new light in his eyes.

She says, “ _See you later, Papa Fox, go look after your kits!_ ”

She says, “ _Honey, I’m home! Where are the children?_ ”

She says, “ _How are daddy’s little monsters?_ ” and kisses the scowl off his mouth.

Then, one night, she asks, “Would they like jammies?”

Wymack twists to look at her from where he’d been riffling through the fridge for something to cook. “Would they like _what?_ ”

“Jammies, like pajamas,” she asks, turning her laptop to face him and making his mind twirl dizzily in the process. “Would they like that? I got a promotional coupon.”

The fact that she isn’t even remotely teasing somehow makes him jitterier than if she had been. For the life of him, Wymack can’t help but think she sounds like a wife thinking kindly of her new stepchildren. He stops letting the cold air out of the refrigerator, closes the door to walk over and wrap her up as she smiles at him. “David?”

_You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me_ , he doesn’t say, but kisses her ear and thinks she knows anyway.

“I’ll ask them, Abs.”

He’ll ask because his first impulse is to say _yes._ More often than not, they turn up in their completely adult, mostly plain night clothes. The thought of them cuddled up, as warm and sweet as they make Wymack’s chest feel… He suddenly wants that so badly, he starts talking himself down. They don’t _need_ pajamas, might not appreciate the insinuation. But the swear jar is pretty fucking full and they’ve got to do _something_ with it, right? And, hell, they could get them for themselves! When they aren’t his littles, they are adults with their own money. They could get them or not.

Still, he thinks his tone isn’t quite casual enough when he says over ice-cream, “Abby wants to know how you feel about gifts.”

Nine gazes snap up to him, varying levels of confusion and shock (and ever-present blankness).

“You tell her about us?” Aaron asks, paling a little and Wymack realizes he started this conversation the wrong way. Abby may be one of the foxes trusted adults, but she’s not their caregiver. They may not know what to make of her in this context, of the fact that she even knows they exist.

“She knows we do this, but not how,” Wymack explains carefully. “I spoke to her and Betsy before I set anything up, to make sure I didn’t sound like a complete lunatic.”

Neil’s eyebrows raise. “And they told you you _didn’t_?”

Wymack spares a moment to sneer at him before he turns back to Aaron. “I haven’t told Abby any specifics from after. I won’t betray that trust, even for her. She wouldn’t ask me to.”

There’s a breath of silence where they all chew on that before Kevin speaks up. “Just them?”

Wymack nods. “Don’t trust anyone else with this,” he explains with a huff, “I’m not risking you for anyone.”

A bashful and pleased little shuffle passes over everyone, even if Andrew looks away, eats a mouthful of ice-cream to hide it.

“Does she wanna give them to us?” Matt asks, curious and unafraid.

“I wouldn’t mind,” Nicky supplies eagerly. “What kinda gifts?

“It’s up to you if she sees you,” Wymack reminds them, “Everyone has to feel safe here, so if anyone doesn’t want her to come in, or doesn’t want her to even send them, that’s ok. That’s why she asked ahead of time.” He hesitates then, the word stuck in his throat, embarrassed, but then again, he’s in a room full of little kids. “She was thinking of getting you… jammies.”

Matt and Allison’s faces light up teasingly, but their voices are full of genuine delight when they both exclaim, “ _Jammies!?_ ”

“Oh my _God,_ ” Nicky is bouncing in place, reaches over to shake Andrew, thinks better of it and shakes Neil instead. “Oh my God, Coach said the word _jammies_! We get _jammies!!_ ”

“You’re a bunch of little shits, you know that?” Wymack sneers, warm.

“ _Swear jar!_ ” Matt shouts, cackling.

“Don’t tease him,” Renee says, even as she giggles happily. Though she rubs her palms on her pants, they’re still cool and slightly sticky when she grabs Wymack’s hand. “I want jammies, that sounds fun.”

Kevin tries to look disgusted, but the way he’s obviously fighting a smile destroys the effect before he can get his face into his hands. “This is ridiculous.”

“We’re little,” Neil says softly, knocking Kevin’s shoulder with his own. “Why shouldn’t it be? _Coach said jammies._ ”

Aaron looks skeptical. “You don’t mean like _footie_ pajamas, do you?”

“Only if you want,” Wymack says with a shrug. Aaron looks caught between looking like he feels accused and contemplative, stuck so firmly in the middle he can’t respond. “I’m taking from the swear jar for this, so you get to pick. Anybody want anything specific?”

Neil’s stops moving, abruptly enough that Wymack notices, glances at him. Andrew is tracing the edge of his arm band when Neil says, “Long sleeves.”

“Sure,” Wymack says, then before the others can turn on any sad looks, “You want it with fox prints, too?”

The little sneer that earns him is not a no, but then he turns to Andrew, “Do you want a hood?”

Andrew doesn’t give him an answer other than marginally lifting his eyebrows, but Aaron pipes in, “How _cozy_.” It would normally be sarcastic, but for the way he’s not meeting anyone’s eye, a light dusting of pink creeping across his cheeks.

There’s a lot of talking in circles then, everyone talking about patterns and prints, styles, the benefits of footies and “shit flaps” “ _Swear jar!!_ ” before Wymack has a tentative list of things to look out for. He also promises he’ll give them a heads up when Abby actually intends to visit them.

And so.

It’s late and Abby’s propped up against his shoulder, pointing out things “his kiddos” might like and Wymack has never described himself as _giddy_ , for fucks sake, but tonight is a really good night.

It’s even better when they’re piled up together after a rough game and there’s a knock on the door. They all know who it is but there’s a nervousness to their excitement that makes Wymack pause to look at them. “All good?”

Nicky is bouncing, but he looks around for the others to nod before he explodes, “Yeah, yeah!! Please?”

Wymack ruffles his hair on his way to the door, “You don’t gotta say please for that.” When he opens the door, he feels the same level of quiet pleasure in his heart he always does to see Abby. He also blinks at the blanket covered laundry bag in her arms. “Dirty laundry?”

Abby looks like she wants to pinch him, but doesn’t have the hand to spare. “I didn’t want them to smell like plastic, I washed them.”

Something stupidly possessive that he doesn’t want to acknowledge makes him tingle with the idea that not only are his little foxes— _their little foxes?_ — going to be wearing their clothes, but they’re also going to smell like Abby does their laundry. They’re going to smell like Abby—and sometimes Wymack—when they’re little and soft. He steps to the side to let her in. “Guess who,” he calls.

“Hi everyone,” she says, already sounding hopelessly enamored. She gets a few responses, all excited if anxious, but she takes the time to smile at the ones who stay shyly silent, too. “I come bearing gifts!” she exclaims, sitting the bag down and joining them on the floor.

“Can we see?” Dan asks, wide-eyed innocence.

“Of course!” Abby says, tugging the blanket into her lap, out of the way.

Wymack sits beside her. “You can even wear them if you want.”

They’d picked them out together, so Wymack knows whose is whose, but it’s a little different to see them in real life, about to be handed over to their recipients.

“Renee!” Abby calls, pulling out the sky blue onesie covered in pastel rainbows on fluffy white clouds. Renee takes it with a pleased little hum, holding it out to look at it before holding it to her chest.

“It looks so happy,” she says delightedly.

The warm-yellow one with pixelated video-game hearts across the chest is in Nicky’s hands almost before Abby says his name. She laughs as he squeals “ _Thank you!_ ” and Wymack stops him just short of stripping to put it on right then.

Getting Andrew and Aaron to narrow down a choice had been like pulling teeth from an uncooperative crocodile, so Wymack had narrowed his questions down to two: “Do you like being The Monsters?” and “Do you want to match?”

Without looking at him, Aaron had mumbled, “That’s corny” in the tone Wymack is coming to understand is an emotionally recalcitrant way to say “ _This isn’t a no_ ” without actually outright agreeing.

A bit of a hush falls on the room when Abby offers them their two dark grey onesies, each bearing a hood with little grey horns and the night-blue shadow of a monster over the heart. One little monster marching to the right reads, “ _Let the wild rumpus start_ ” and the other facing its twin reads, “ _I’ll eat you up, I love you so_.” She’s careful not to pick for them, hands the pajamas over with one hand, even as Aaron looks half stunned to take them.

Abby has the emotional awareness to redirect everyone’s attention while they process that.

“Kev,” she says, smiling sweetly at the flush that springs to his cheeks. She hands him the pink one—that she has patiently, knowingly called “pastel red”—spotted with little pineapples and tiaras. “Our little princess, right?”

Kevin’s blush kicks up a notch, but his eyes betray his appreciation as he takes it from her, stroking it fondly. “Yeah.”

“And, we have a little pirate, too?” Abby asks and Dan grins.

“We do!” she answers, holding out her hands for the sea green onesie covered in a treasure map decorated with all manner of nautical devices. Matt immediately leans over to trace the dotted line to find the treasure chest and Wymack doesn’t doubt for a second he’ll continue to do it when Dan is actually wearing it.

Matt’s has orange and cream stripes with two teddy bears hugging under “ _FREE BEAR HUGS_ ” on the chest. He explodes into thrilled laughter when he flips the hood up to find it has teddy bear ears. “ _Yes!_ It’s perfect!!”

“ _Pretty!_ ” cries Allison, when Abby unfolds her peach onesie, dotted with little pressed flowers and leaves. She hides her face in it and laughs, a little embarrassed, “It’s so _cute_ , I love it!”

“Neil,” Abby calls coaxingly and Neil probably flushes at least partly at being gentled, but when she hands him his light grey onesie, the bright orange little foxes all over it definitely contribute.

“I half expected the whole thing to be orange,” he says.

“Grey’s your favorite, right?” Wymack says and Neil’s eyes are so surprised it very nearly hurts.

“Yeah,” he replies, holding it close to his chest. “Can I put it on?” he blurts, then casts an embarrassed glance over at Andrew.

_Junkie,_ Andrew’s face says and Neil scrunches his face at him. At some point, he and Aaron had sorted themselves out, each holding their onesie, the fronts both hidden from view.

“Of course,” Wymack answers, but then Abby is digging back into the bag.

“After Coach gets his!” she exclaims, and Wymack startles.

“ _Mine?_ ” Her sly smile does nothing to soothe his frazzled nerves.

“Yes,” she sings and pulls out an orange plaid _monstrosity_ , with COACH written in block letters across the back.

“ _No,_ ” Wymack says flatly, even knowing resistance is futile as he sees the joy light up the faces of everyone in the room.

“ _Yes!!_ ” Dan and Matt shriek as one, Allison laughing gleefully.

Nicky is practically crying, clutching at Wymack’s sleeve. “Coach, _Coach_ , you gotta!” The room descends into happy chaos before Wymack throws his hands up.

“Alright, _alright!_ You’re all such f—” Abby, the traitor, jams a matching nightcap over his head and he turns to glare at her amidst a chorus of giggles. “If you want to change in private, take the bathroom or the office.”

Nicky’s shirt is over his head almost as quickly as Andrew makes for the office, Neil trailing behind him. Renee turns to enter the bathroom. Allison faces away and tugs off her shirt, voice muffled when she asks, “Abby, did you get one, too?”

“I did!” Abby replies, “Will you all be ok if we step out to change?”

“Uh-huh!” Dan exclaims, changing behind the bulk of Matt who is excitedly stepping into his onesie.

In Wymack’s bedroom, Abby is beaming as she undresses. “Oh, don’t give me that face!”

“I’m not even looking at you,” Wymack says sulkily, shucking off his pants, but then she’s standing in front of him, zipping up her own onesie. She wraps her arms around his neck, kissing his ear.

“You’re having such a good time,” she whispers confidentially, “They all are. You’re a great dad, David.”

Wymack waves her off, embarrassed. “Yeah, yeah,” he kisses her as he pulls the onesie up over his shoulders. “Buttering me up won’t work, you traitor,” he teases, and she laughs. Though, he must admit, she does look particularly cute in her polka dot onesie.

“At least you didn’t make mine footies,” he grumbles, zipping it up.

Abby looks down at her covered feet, shrugging and stuffing her hands in her pockets. “I get cold,” she explains and, oh, he knows. If silly pajamas will keep her from shoving her freezing toes under his thigh, then well, that’s sort of a win.

The dull roar in the other room picks up and Wymack kisses her again before he turns to open the door. It goes silent when they step into view.

Wymack doesn’t think he looks _significantly_ less threatening wearing a onesie, but something about the way they all turn to him, most of them clearly adoring, makes him feel…oh, he doesn’t know, _wibbly._ “What!” he says mock-defensively, crossing his arms.

“Can I hug you?” Matt explodes eagerly.

All pretense of annoyance drops. “Always, Mattie,” Wymack says, swaying and laughing when Matt launches up into his arms.

“You look so _darling_ ,” Abby says, and the bright grins and shy shuffling that gets her makes Wymack’s chest flutter. He steps back to hold Matt at arm’s length and look him over.

“Never thought I’d see the day I call you nightmares cute,” Wymack mutters, tugging on Matt’s bear ear. He shakes his head fondly when Matt rocks back on his heels, pleased.

“Do they fit ok?” Abby asks, adjusting Nicky’s collar. She grins at him when he flips the hood up over his head and it doesn’t even have to stretch to make it.

“It’s so cute! I’ll pay the _swear jar_ , we’re so _fucking cute!!_ ” Nicky exclaims, wrapping Abby in a hug when she laughs. “You’re so cute, too!”

Abby pats his back. “Thank you!”

Wymack looks around at all the happy faces, taking in that even though Aaron can’t quite look at anyone, he’s having to bite back a smile. Andrew looks bored, but the “ _I’ll eat you up, I love you so_ ” on his chest— _he’s wearing a fucking onesie_ —means he wants to be here, too. Kevin looks shy enough that Wymack shifts Matt over to one arm. “C’mere, Princess.”

Kevin flushes sharply, but comes over with a smile twitching on his mouth. “You don’t have to call me that.”

“I won’t if you don’t like it,” Wymack counters, “You look sweet.”

Kevin hesitates before shaking his head, putting it on Wymack’s shoulder. “Just here,” he whispers.

“Of course,” Wymack says, petting his back. “Can Abby play with you all while I sort out dinner?”

Allison is swinging Neil and Renee’s hands back and forth. “Can we watch _Winnie the Pooh_ after?”

“I love _Winnie the Pooh_ ,” Abby says, tucking Allison’s hair behind her ear. And Matt goes to join them, enthralled by the promise of cartoons.

“Ok?” Wymack asks Kevin, who nods.

“I wanna play with Aaron,” he says, because Aaron is easy to be around for him, their shyness and waning embarrassment easy to sync together. Wymack pats his back, nodding him on, and Aaron drifts to him instantly. Andrew watches them, before he looks to Wymack, as if silently daring him to say something.

“Ok?” is all Wymack says and Andrew answers by pulling up his hood, settling into his pajamas, into his space here. He sits down by Neil, _with_ Neil, so close that their shoulders touch. Neil turns from where he’d been pointing out one of the foxes on his tummy to Dan, before his eyes brighten enough to be a smile all their own.

Carrying that brightness in his chest, Wymack goes to call for pizza.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent entirely, way too long thinking about those onesies. I probably thought myself into a really stupid place. But! They’re cuties and I like it, so here we are! What would you have picked for them?
> 
> Disclaimer: “Let the wild rumpus start” and “I’ll eat you up, I love you so” come from " _Where The Wild Things Are_ " by Maurice Sendak. I realized I’d never read it as a kid, but I love that last quote.


	13. The Fox Den’s Toy Collection Grows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wymack has not forgotten his promise to get Dan a stuffed animal.

At his age, Wymack really shouldn’t expect to have any strong feelings driving past an old and now dying toy store chain.

Yeah, he remembers passing the stores as a kid, would recognize the jingle and the mascot even _concussed_. But it wasn’t like either of his parents were regularly indulging him with toys, and definitely not from a big name store. By the time he was in a position to shop there, he was too old to care about anything they sold.

Recently, however, he’s found himself the caregiver of nine under-spoiled little rugrats.

Most of the things he’s wound up buying for them have been things for them to share. Partly because things like that are simpler to pick out, but also because they could all use a gentle nudge into socializing. The coloring books were an easy first choice, a winner with all of the foxes. Other things have filtered into the space over time, some from the foxes themselves, some from Wymack after he realizes they’d like them. The picture riddle books he has taking up the bottom of his bookshelf, the puzzles they’ve completed and glued together, sitting in a stack under his bed, the little tubs of playdoh. He hasn’t gone as far as to allow them finger paints, but there are some body crayons under his bathroom sink that Allison and Renee are particularly fond of tagging the others with. (Wymack has spent more than one night with a heart drawn on his cheek, colors may vary.)

But now that they’ve got their own onesies, he takes a little while to think about what other things they might want individually.

Wymack has not forgotten his promise to get Dan a stuffed animal.

It only takes one glance at the flapping yellow “ _75% off all toys!_ ” sign in his rearview for him to make a probably-illegal u-turn and pull into the parking lot.

One day he’ll stop feeling ridiculous when he’s shopping for them, but as it is, he enters the store already feeling very out of place. He tries not to run over any of the dozens of screaming children as he pushes his buggy, sending out a group text: _Do any of you have favorite animals?_

When everything is on discount, it’s a bit of a disaster trying to find anything, which is frankly fine because Foxes almost never give straight answers. He’s been wandering through the sparse shelves for almost fifteen minutes before he’s gotten an answer from almost everyone, even if the answer is “ _not really_ ” and Neil sending him two private texts: “ _Is it cliché to say foxes?_ ” and “ _Drew_ _doesn’t hate cats_.”

The chat doesn’t quiet down the entire time Wymack paces the soft toys aisle, but Wymack is mostly content to ignore the buzzing in his pocket as he picks the stuffed animals. He spends a few minutes on the way to the register trying to justify putting the purchase on the team card before he just shakes his head. No, he is not a rich man, but as a collegiate coach, he does pretty well for himself. And hey, it’s not like he blows his money having fun all that often; he hasn’t even been on _vacation_ recently.

Caring for his foxes is worth splurging on.

So on the way to the registers he picks up a few more things than he really needs, but whatever, maybe they’ll come in handy. At least the cashier doesn’t look at him funny, babbling excitedly about the things he’s buying without actually asking him anything about who they’re for. It seems a shame they don’t have tip jars in retail stores as he’s leaving.

The toys sit under his desk for a few days before he actually gives them out.

“Heads up,” he says, sitting on the floor with the bags. He doesn’t actually want to make a big, touching production of this, it’s already going to feel like a lot without him _bestowing gifts upon the unloved kids_.

Dan looks up first at him, so he tosses her the terrycloth bear with a limp little bowtie. He gives her a smile at the weak little squee that escapes her when she realizes what she’s holding. “You promised!” she exclaims, hugging it.

“I did,” Wymack agrees, tossing Allison her pony to the sound of excited giggling.

“You actually got me a pony!!”

Wymack winks at her. “Well, you asked.”

Renee holds her arms out as soon as she sees the purple elephant, eyes wide. “I love her.”

“I’m glad, sweetheart,” Wymack replies, and it rolls out so easily he doesn’t even realize he’s never said anything like that before. Matt’s grinning at him when he throws his hands up to catch his puppy dog.

“ _Bun-bun!!_ ” Nicky shouts, scrambling close when Wymack pulls out the fuzzy bunny with rainbow stripes in its floppy ears. “My pretty bun-bun!”

Aaron doesn’t say anything at first when Wymack passes him the green dinosaur, but the way his mouth wobbles towards a smile before he hides his face in his new toy is quite telling. “Thanks, Coach,” he whispers, playing with the spikes on its back.

Wymack squeezes Aaron’s shoulder. “You’re welcome, kiddo.”

Andrew similarly doesn’t say anything, but cuts a mildly accusing glance at Neil who tries (and of course, fails) to look innocent, when Wymack hands him the softest of all the kitties he touched at the toy store. He even goes faintly pink, something Wymack is certain he’s never witnessed out of extreme exertion, as the cat lands in his lap. He hesitates a moment, before running a gentle finger over the black point of its ear; his hand twitches, the slightest tremble. Wymack looks away.

“Neil…” he begins with a smile.

“Yeah?” Neil says, eyes bright as he rocks forward. “I get a fox, Coach?”

Without bothering with any further anticipation, he hands Neil the fox, fluffy and soft, sweet looking. An actual smile stretches across Neil’s face—tiny and genuine—as he sticks his nose in its fur. “It smells nice.”

“They’ve been doused with baby toy cleaner,” Wymack says because he’s _seen some shit in his days._

“And me?” Kevin says, crawling over to sit right by Wymack, whose throat gets tight at how sweet and open Kevin is right now.

“Of course, Princess,” Wymack answers, balling up the empty bag with one hand and handing Kevin his new lion with the other. “Never forget you.”

Kevin huffs a laugh that really, _really,_ could only be considered a giggle, hiding his face in Wymack’s shoulder. “You neither,” he says and Wymack turns to squish him in a hug.

The others crowd him shortly after, all talking at once, picking names as they show off their new toys to each other. Wymack gets asked to kiss several stuffed animals, and does so with minimal embarrassment. They elect to leave their new “friends” at Wymack’s place for now, so they can “keep each other company” while they’re in class or at practice.

Later, when Wymack is putting them back into the bag for the time being, he thinks he ought to get a… footlocker.

…Oh, really, what’s the point in kidding himself at this point?

Wymack looks at the little odds and ends around his apartment, _loves_ that he can see his littles’ presence even when they’re not actually here, but also can admit—at least to himself—that he should probably get a toy chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> RIP TRU you will be missed in an abstract, nostalgic sort of way.


	14. About Little Foxes: Andrew

Even after he acclimates, Andrew doesn’t really speak.

It’s not defiance, not even discomfort, really, because he _does_ answer people, he even _asks_ things.

Wymack—as well as the other non-Neil foxes—have come to understand the tones of Andrew’s silence, tiny gestures they may have missed before. The tilt of his head “ _yes or no_ ”, the way his eyes narrow for no, the way he doesn’t move at all for yeses, holds his hand out if he wants what’s being offered; the ways being looked at, even _stared_ at is not a threat. It may not look like much from the outside, but they’re not outsiders, not anymore. Once, Wymack catches Matt signing the alphabet at Andrew, who doesn’t respond but definitely remembers. (When Aaron sits down beside them and asks him to repeat it, Wymack has to quietly clear his throat.)

It’s noisy, the first day Andrew actually speaks and Wymack doesn’t know if that’s significant or not. What he says definitely is, though.

Because Wymack has his back turned, between Dan and Allison who have made him into some sort of makeshift maypole as they try to teach him the words to a children’s song he pretends he doesn’t already know. It feels like a very frightening fluke that he even hears Andrew’s quiet, “No.”

Wymack stops cold—so do Dan and Allison, for that matter—turning to intervene in whatever’s happening, but Nicky is already stepping back, hands behind his back. “Ok!” he exclaims comfortably, “I got excited, I’m sorry.”

Andrew stares at him and though his face doesn’t change, he swallows. “ _No,_ ” he says again.

Nicky looks confused at first, then understanding hits him all at once and he looks alarmingly close to crying. Instead, he nods, taking another step back. “No,” he agrees, “No touch.”

Considering the generally vacant state of his face, Andrew looks _heartbreakingly_ bewildered. He turns, headed straight for the door, but Wymack is already there.

 “How about the office if you need a break?” he suggests quietly, so only Andrew can hear him over the music. Andrew isn’t looking him in the face, staring hard at his shoulder, so Wymack shifts to the side freeing up the doorway. “If you need to leave, you can, you’ll _always_ be welcome back. But if you just want to be alone for a bit, I’d knock on the door before I came in to check on you, ok?”

Andrew doesn’t say anything, the hard set of his shoulders doesn’t loosen at all. But then he takes a breath Wymack doesn’t see him let out and turns down the hall instead. Wymack lets the breath out for him, feeling a little stupid. Andrew can take care of himself, Andrew is a grown up, _but…_ not when he’s little he’s not. Wymack’s stomach had twisted at the idea of a little Andrew wandering out alone and it would’ve stuck that way all night.

Everyone’s gazes follow Andrew as he goes to the office and shuts the door. Relief and guilt in equal measures cut the strings off Nicky, who sags to the floor, propping himself up against the sofa. Matt and Renee shift over easily to make room for him, concern palpable between them.

“Give him a while,” Wymack tells the others, “We all ok?”

Neil turns to him, visibly has some internal conflict, before holding out his hand. Dan and Allison push on Wymack’s back before he can even ask if they’ll be ok on their own. He takes Neil’s hand, sits with him. “What’re you working on?” he asks, like he can’t see the Find It puzzle on the floor between he and Aaron.

“Princess,” Dan calls, half twisting in a senseless dance, “Which princess is your favorite? I’ll teach you her songs.” Kevin gets the same charmingly bashful look on his face he does whenever they call him princess, but he comes to her outstretched hands easily, grateful for the distraction.

Allison comes over to Nicky, curled low and not-quite-focusing on watching cartoons.

“Can I sit?” she asks, pointing at his lap.

Nicky blinks at her in shock before his face opens up into a wavering smile, thankful. He opens his arms, “Can I talk?”

Allison rolls her eyes as she settles with her legs across his, his arms around hers. “Of course, Nicky.”

Everyone settled, Wymack gives it a half hour, not carefully counted, before he turns, moving slow to ruffle Neil’s hair. “I’ll be right back, ok?” he asks, and the relieved sag of Neil’s shoulders is completely unsubtle.

“We’ll go,” Aaron whispers quickly, before Wymack can even get his feet under him. “Tell him we can come in if he doesn’t want to come out.”

Wymack spares a moment to ruffle Aaron’s hair, too. “Sure, kiddo.”

As promised, Wymack knocks on the door. “Andrew? I’m gonna open the door, alright?” When no answer is forthcoming, Wymack does open the door. The lights aren’t on and for a scary moment, Wymack can’t even see Andrew in the darkness, but turns to find a familiar shape jammed in the corner behind the door. Leaving the door open a crack so the light filters in—so they aren’t closed in a space alone together—Wymack bypasses the overhead light for the desk lamp. His heart sinks a little when it comes on.

It’s just enough light to see the moisture on Andrew’s cheeks.

Andrew isn’t sobbing, Wymack can’t even picture that happening. But if you’d asked him so much as a few days ago, imagining the big tears dripping down Andrew’s face as he sat frozen in stony silence, well… Actually, that seems so right it kills Wymack to even think about.

Wymack goes to crouch on the floor in front of him, but moves to sit against the far wall when it makes Andrew move to grab a knife that isn’t there, hasn’t been there for weeks. “Can you tell me what’s wrong?” he asks, but Andrew just stares at him, eyes dark and far away.

“Can I have someone else come sit with you?” Wymack tries instead, aware of the power imbalance between them when Andrew’s little. “Aaron and Neil told me to tell you they’ll come in if you’d rather not come out yet.”

Andrew does something with his hand, quick and sloppy motions without even lifting his arms from his knees. Wymack can’t parse letters that quickly, but there were four of them, and that first one looked like a B. “Both?” he guesses, and when Andrew just blinks at him, Wymack leans out the door. “Paging Neil and Aaron.”

They both freeze when they see Andrew, his hands back in tight fists atop his knees, not looking at anyone.

“Are you ok to sit with Andrew for a little bit?” Wymack asks them.

Neil plops down an arm away from him, Aaron doing the same on the opposite side, staring at him with wide eyes. “Always,” Neil says and Andrew turns to him like the word was a signal.

“Ok. I think I’m gonna have the others sit down for a movie,” Wymack says, standing and heading for the door. “Join us when you’re feeling up to it, ok, Andrew?”

“Drew,” Andrew says, voice low.

“What was that?” Wymack says, and turns back to find Andrew’s hand fisted in the sleeve of Neil’s hoodie, staring down at Aaron’s hand between them.

“One of them called me Andy, _Raggedy Andy_ ,” he smiles in a way that hollows out his eyes. Wymack doesn’t ask (he could _kill_ someone), as he watches Neil’s knuckles go white against his legs, Aaron’s face losing its color.

“Drew,” Aaron repeats and Andrew turns to him.

“Only here.”

It’s admitting a lot in a few words. You don’t give your name if you aren’t going to stay, but Andrew is doing more than just giving a name. He’s using a _new_ one, one just for them, one his abusers never touched. He’s giving them the chance at his little self, the one he never got to have.

Aaron looks close to tears, too, but instead offers Andrew his sleeve. He wipes Andrew’s cheek when he doesn’t move. “Ok, Drew.”

“Do you want me to tell the others?” Wymack asks.

Andrew just looks at him, not quite little, not quite _Andrew_ either. “They can call me what they want,” he challenges.

“They can also call you what _you_ want,” Wymack reminds him, then takes a moment to consider his words. “Everything that happens to you here is your call.”

Andrew doesn’t really do anything different, but Wymack thinks something crosses his face that he might not normally have let anyone see. Another series of quick hand motions—and Wymack _is_ going to learn Sign, he can’t _not_ —that Aaron watches. “Drew,” he says.

“Okay,” Wymack says, “Whenever you’re ready, Drew.”

The others are already piled around the couch like they couldn’t stand to be away from each other. There’s a space in the middle clearly left for Wymack and his heart swells. “Drew’s okay,” he says casually, taking his spot on the couch between Kevin and Renee, the latter tucking comfortably under his arm. “They’ll be back in after a breather.”

“Drew?” Nicky asks with wide eyes.

Wymack nods. “Only here.”

_Here_ is awfully special, as far as Wymack could tell, none of them have ever been anywhere quite like it. When the others come back in fifteen minutes into _Monster’s Inc._ and Andrew sits down less than an arm’s length away from Nicky, they can all feel something is different. Andrew hands Nicky his kitty, drops it unceremoniously into his cousin’s lap because he _knows_ his cousin wants to squeeze something, but that something can’t be Andrew. Nicky knows this, too, and squeezes Kitty tightly, kisses its fur, but doesn’t move an inch towards Andrew. Watching this happen, something that would seem out of character anywhere else, makes it seems like the whole world is not quite real, like outside is the dream.

This is where they’re real, where they _get to be_ real.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> About Andrew and ASL: I was thinking about… Fruit’s Basket actually? There’s this character who is selectively mute because of some lingering issues involving child abuse where she was “discouraged” from speaking. And I was also thinking about how I hear about people with nonverbal children who are _so fucking happy_ to finally be able to communicate via Sign. And for Andrew with his eidetic memory and knack for language learning, it seemed like a good fit.


	15. About Little Foxes: Nicky

Nicky always likes telling stories, but when he’s little they’re fantastic and ridiculous. Wymack loves that he’s managed to hold onto the part of himself capable of that.

Everyone is a pirate and a princess and a knight and a space explorer; everyone is in love and gets happy endings, even the fire-breathing dragons, even the orphans, even gay little pauper, _everyone_. Their families love them and—if his voice catches when he tells that story, Wymack pretends not to notice—and they all live happily ever after, together. Nobody gets sent away.

There are differences in their stories, but not enough that Wymack ever knows exactly who he’s talking about.

Still, one day, Nicky is anxious about something so he’s telling a story, quick and hectic.

Allison is over letting Dan use her to teach Matt how to braid hair, so right now Nicky is showing out just for Wymack. He’s playing with one of the paper flowers Renee and Kevin are making when he flops onto the couch, jostling Aaron where he’d been reading on the far end.

“Coach? Did I ever tell you how I did it?”

Wymack arches an eyebrow at him. “Did what, Nicky?”

Nicky makes a big motion that doesn’t really answer the question. “All of it!”

“Don’t think so,” Wymack allows, because Nicky wants to tell the story and Wymack is willing to listen. “How’d you do it?”

“I made places for us,” Nicky says, looking at the flower. “I’m gonna have Renee teach me to make these. Whenever they—” his face pinches, and he shakes his head. “Whenever I felt like I was getting kicked out of my own body, I made places for us.”

Aaron pauses in Wymack’s peripherals, but doesn’t say anything.

“It’s silly, you know! But when nothing feels real anyway, why _not_ get crazy and make up whatever you want?” Nicky says, “I never tried to go back, to pretend we were loved back then, we weren’t,” he’s still smiling, but not quite like he’s happy. “I couldn’t imagine anyone loving us as children, not really.”

“Nicky…” Wymack starts.

“No, no, I know they _should_ have,” Nicky assures him, “but that didn’t matter, ‘cause they didn’t. But who cares, because we were kings! We were going to _space_ to meet aliens who liked how tall I was and how small the Twins were. And we were rock stars on tour, nowhere to go back to, only forward, onto the next show! Aaron would be drummer if I could get Andrew on bass.” He laughs delightedly, “I was out of it for like _a week_ , and they whole time I was stuck on the idea of picking and pressing flowers all across Europe to take to the people we loved, because we _had_ people we loved.”

Nicky’s laughter dies down a little, rubs at his eye. “It was always different from real, because we were always _going_ somewhere. It didn’t matter where, but the places I put us, we were _going_ somewhere.”

Wymack doesn’t know what to say to that at first. “What do you think about now?”

“Germany, sometimes. Erik,” Nicky admits, but takes an unsteady breath and laughs, “But Coach?”

“Yeah, Nicky?”

“Coach, I think about this.” Nicky gives Wymack the flower without looking, “I think about getting to be here like this and I think ‘ _we’re here_ ’, but also we’re _going_ somewhere and,” his laugh is shivery even if his smile is bright when he faces Wymack. “Coach, I think we’re actually gonna make it this time?”

That makes Wymack smile, even if it’s a little sad. “You _are_ going somewhere, sweetheart.”

“… _We can?_ ” Nicky asks, voice breaking. He startles before Wymack can tell him, _of course,_ and they turn to see Aaron touching Nicky’s hand.

Aaron’s got his knees pulled up to his chest and he’s looking away, but his hand is on Nicky’s in silent comfort. Wymack is struck by the thought that he can’t recall Aaron ever offering any such support to Nicky before today.

“Of course, you can, Nicky,” Wymack says, looking at Aaron who pretends not to see. “You even get to pick where you go.”

Nicky jams the fingers of his other hand in his mouth and sniffles. As one of the most tactile of all of them, when Wymack shifts towards him, he doesn’t have to wait for Nicky to turn into his arms, burrowing in his shoulder.

His hand, though, stays under Aaron’s.

Wymack presses a kiss to the top of his head and lets him shake himself out, lets him fall asleep like that. Later, after they’ve all actually gone to bed, he orders a copy of _Oh, The Places You’ll Go_ and falls asleep trying to think of what to write in it for Nicky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhh I just like H/C and weepy-ness I guess, I have no excuse.
> 
> “Oh, The Places You’ll Go” is by none other than Dr. Seuss.


	16. About Little Foxes: Aaron and Nicky

Seeing Betsy’s number pop up on his phone after one of Aaron and Andrew’s joint sessions puts a tiny splash of dread in Wymack’s stomach, not entirely irrationally he thinks. Things have been good lately, things have been great between the whole team, but with the Monsters especially. Aaron has been talking to Betsy, has been talking to Andrew, both of them present and participating in social lives that would’ve seemed outrageous before. Things are _good_.

But old habits die hard and Wymack expects blood when answers the phone.

Instead, there’s a faint joy in Betsy’s voice as she allows him to hear past her professional, degreed veneer. She doesn’t say exactly what she’s pleased about, can’t, but she asks if there’s going to be a playdate tonight. The impulse to deny that phrasing—looking directly at the boxes of pancake batter and silly toppings he’d promised them for a good practice—is stupid at this point. Betsy probably knows more about him as a caregiver than he’s ever thought to tell her. “Yeah, why?”

“ _I think there was a rather significant breakthrough today,_ ” Betsy says. “ _I’ll leave it to you to discern whether they need gentling or a reward. You’ve cared for them wonderfully thus far._ ”

That is enough to have Wymack fighting off a smile through the rest of his preparations. He doesn’t know what he’s going to wind up facing tonight, but he trusts Betsy’s assessments intrinsically. Whether Andrew and Aaron come in rattling out of their skin, looking to be distracted or looking to sit quietly at someone’s side, Wymack is willing to make that happen.

Andrew shows up without Aaron, which is unusual at this point, but there’s no blankness or tension in his face when he gently squeezes Wymack’s wrist in greeting. His gaze is bright and unworried.

So Wymack doesn’t let himself worry either. “All good, Drew?” he asks.

Andrew nods and catches Neil’s eye from across the room, makes an amusingly unsubtle beeline towards him. The sweet way he bumps his head against Neil’s is not for Wymack to see, but the fact that he’s allowed to settles warmly in his heart. So does the fact that Kevin looks endeared to see it, and then touched when Andrew leans to let Kevin brush his knuckles against Andrew’s temple.

The other’s trickle in slowly tonight, mostly loose and happy. Dan and Matt freshly showered, smelling sweet and like each other when they crowd Wymack for a hug. Allison hangs on his arm when she comes in, gets glitter on his face when she kisses his cheek. Wymack has half a mind to ban glitter in the apartment, because he has no doubt it’s going to wind up everywhere. (That makes him irrationally tickled, though, so he lets her carry on.) Renee comes in similarly glittered, though the light in her eyes when she notices Andrew’s face nearly rivals it all.

All very normal, comfortingly familiar at this point.

Then Nicky and Aaron come in.

Together, which is not strange necessarily, but hand in hand which is _very_ unusual and gives everyone pause. Andrew least of all, but still, they can’t help the way they all stare.

Nicky has obviously been crying, but he’s got a stunningly bright smile on his face, so Wymack gives him a concerned half-smile in return.

“Hey Nicky,” he says, “You doing ok, bud?”

“Uh-huh,” Nicky says, looking a fraction closer to tears before he puts his face on Wymack’s shoulder, all without dropping Aaron’s hand. “Happy tears.”

Wymack rubs his back, smile growing. “Ok, kid, that’s good then,” he says, then chuckles, “So dramatic.”

Nicky laughs wetly. “Shut up!”

Aaron is, as always, a little more subdued, but lets Wymack squeeze his shoulder in greeting.

And the change throughout the night is not exactly subtle, because Aaron seems to stick to Nicky’s side. While Wymack—and Matt, because he’s probably the biggest little—flip pancakes, Aaron sits on the edge of Nicky’s chair, eating bits of fruit together and grunting at Nicky’s continual string of excitement. Not to say he normally _avoids_ Nicky, but most of Aaron’s idea of little space is soft and quiet, not the over the top, play-til-you-drop sort of little space Nicky favors. Aaron likes coloring and being read to, he likes puzzles and being close to his brother or Kevin. Sometimes he sits and Signs little conversations with Matt or lets Renee draw on him.

All to say, Nicky is _A Lot_ for him, but tonight Aaron is trying to reach him. And even just this first night, he’s making an effort and it’s making a difference. Nicky can’t stop smiling more than usual, but there’s an ease to him that hasn’t been there before. He looks… at peace.

He does know his cousin though, so after a while he kisses his temple and runs off to dance with Dan. Aaron seems a little tired, but he looks like he’s ok with that, enough for him to slouch into Kevin’s side unbothered as they play _I Spy_ together.

Eventually, he says he’s got to study for an exam and wants to turn in early, Kevin already agreeing to walk back with him. Wymack thinks he might just like some genuine quiet time as well, so he doesn’t do more than make him promise to text when he gets to the tower as he hugs Kevin goodnight. Aaron and Andrew just bump knuckles as he passes, but Nicky sits up out of Allison’s arms where they’d been cuddling on the floor.

“Night-night!” he whisper-shouts, like it’s actually bedtime, then laughs like that tickles him. His hands are folded carefully in his lap, like he thinks he may have already asked enough today.

Aaron surprises them all by giving without being asked.

Bright red and clearly uncomfortable, but completely, _overwhelmingly_ earnest, Aaron leans down to quickly kiss Nicky’s cheek. “Night-night.”

Wymack watches that one action hit Nicky in the most loving way a blow can land, watches it shake him as Aaron stands and hurries for the door, flustered, Kevin following behind him looking almost proud.

Allison sits up, too, tugging Nicky into her arms so he can put his face in her neck, breathing shakily, clutching his rabbit to his chest.

When they all finally call it a night, Wymack kisses Nicky’s forehead, watches him leave with Neil and Andrew close against his shoulders, like they’re guarding the Twin’s guardian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authorial ramblings! 
> 
> See the thing is, I got to thinking that at some point Aaron would have to address his casual homophobia. Betsy would likely be the one to point out that it’s understandably not a good feeling for a loved one who isn’t generally affectionate to express outright disgust with you.
> 
> And thinking about Nicky with Neil and “The Phone”, he was probably trying to do something similar with Aaron? Like, if he mentioned liking men enough Aaron would get desensitized, but it just unintentionally escalated. It would take some talking for them to see where things actually lie and I think they’re to the point that Aaron couldn’t stand for his family to think he actually hated them.
> 
> My, my… Maybe when I make this a series I’ll do a oneshot for that session or Aaron going to talk to Nicky, but that’s a difficult conversation to have, no? Hm. We'll see!


	17. About Little Foxes: The Twins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Also, Bee and Wymack chat)

Andrew and Aaron aren’t always _Andrew and Aaron_ anymore, at some point they get solidified as The Twins and don’t buck the title.

It’s an easy distinction to make, between the two things. If they are on their own, they want to be; it’s Drew and it’s Aaron. But some days, when the outside world was less kind, or they’re tired, or _they’re_ feeling less kind, they stay so close together it’s almost like they’re one thing. It bleeds into their everyday lives and, still, Aaron and Andrew don’t say a word against it. “ _Where are the Twins?_ ” and “ _Ask the Twins_ ” and “ _The Twinyards were amazing last game_ ” and on, and on, neither of them batting an eye. If anything, it seems they’ve come to like it, _like_ being addressed as a unified front.

“They were broken apart,” Wymack says one day, “When they were born, when they grew up, when they _met_ and toughed it out, even _then_ , everything between them was broken.” He looks over at Betsy who’s stirring her hot chocolate absently, “They’re gluing themselves back together.” It goes without saying that he’s worried about if they’re gluing themselves together only to rip off skin when they try separating.

Betsy hums. “Twins often go through phases of viewing themselves inseparably, as a unit. Aaron and Andrew never got that as children,” she says, then adds on a bit unnecessarily, “Their later codependency was not childish, not in any healthy way.”

Wymack thinks about drugs and car accidents and scoffs. “I’d say fucking not.”

“But now it can be,” she adds softly. “Yes, they’re gluing themselves together, smoothing pieces of themselves over so they fit and never have to lose each other again. Especially as—”

“As functioning members of adult society?” Wymack tries, then sighs with something not unlike embarrassment when she smiles at him knowingly.

“That, too,” Betsy allows. “But what I was getting at is that, yes, you’re right, they’re gluing themselves together again. But especially as your _littles_ , they can learn to… _untangle_ themselves without breaking one another.” She pats Wymack’s arm, “They can learn that because they have kind hands guiding them now.”

Taking a sip of coffee just to give himself something to do, Wymack thinks on that for a moment. “Unbraiding instead of chopping off.”

Betsy makes a face like she finds that humorous and awful, refrains from laughing. “So to speak, yes,” she agrees as she stands. “David, you’re raising them to believe they can _have_ things without it hurting them,” she pats his shoulder as she passes, “Don’t underestimate how important that is. It’s a _first._ ”

Wymack stays at the table for a while, thinking on that, well after his coffee has gone cold and he finishes it to the dregs anyway.

It’s a onesie night when it seems like something has happened, something outside of little space that Wymack isn’t sure he needs to ask about. Kevin has latched onto Renee, watching her draw with the kind of pointed focus that implies he’s ignoring something else. Neil is letting Nicky and Allison paint his nails—something he’s never expressed any particular interest in—each a different color. Dan is watching them from Matt’s lap, telling a story about crafts she wants to try.

So Wymack sits with them, but carefully keeps the corner of his eyes on Aaron and Andrew. They’re locked into the kind of silent conversation only siblings can have, all in the eyes. They’re looking at each other, _really_ looking at each other; their matching outfits, _let the wild rumpus start, I’ll eat you up I love you so,_ and their bare feet, and their mirrored faces. They’re tensed with hesitant curiosity, not violence. They’ve figured something out about each other and are trying to determine what the other is going to do with the information.

Aaron’s hand twitches and Wymack follows the motion. So does Andrew.

[Touch hands?] Aaron signs, like there are about a dozen other words he would like to add, but none of them feel quite right. [Only here,] he signs, then, wonder of wonders, reaches out his hand.

There’s a moment where Wymack can see this not working and it scares him. Because Aaron doesn’t reach out, he doesn’t, he’s been taught not to, especially with his family. But he’s been going to therapy and he’s been _here_ , learning to let people in and learning to _reach out._ They’re both still _learning_ and Wymack doesn’t know if Andrew— _who has been hurt by so many of the hands that reached for him_ —is at a point where he can—

Andrew moves like ripping off a bandage, closes his hand around Aaron’s and doesn’t look away from the shock on his brother’s face. Their knuckles have gone white between them, and Wymack watches their hands tremble, unsure if it’s one or both of them causing it.

It’s emotional enough that he doesn’t feel like intruding anymore, turns to ask Dan when the last time it was people even _made_ friendship bracelets, _no_ , Renee, why would he have embroidery floss?

(They’re all familiar enough with how this works that when the Twins come to join them, they don’t comment on their joined hands, the flush on Aaron’s face. They’re a unit, of course they’re attached, it doesn’t bear mentioning here, because Allison is busy talking about colors and Renee wants to know if Drew would wear a bracelet if she made it for him.)

Andrew and Aaron don’t always speak to each other, but they have come to like using their hands. They like the way they don’t get singled out as often when they’re side by side, not Aaron or Drew, not right now, just The Twins. Aaron will occasionally speak for them, or Andrew will toss out onehanded Signs, but when they’re holding their stuffies with one hand and each other with the other, the silence between them is comfortable. They don’t feel the need to fill it, it’s full already; content.

So they hold hands and don’t speak.

//\\\

But Andrew acknowledges Katelyn, which says a lot.

It’s not friendly, not by any means, but when she walks into their room and sees him there, she is familiar with the process. She’s willing to ignore how he ignores her, but she never stops trying. She greets everyone, even him, though she’s learned there’s no sense in lingering on him.

When Aaron gets up to hug her, though, Andrew speaks.

“Katelyn.”

No inflection, nothing aggressive, just a flat acknowledgement of her presence that makes everyone whip to look at him in shock.

Aaron looks like he could cry, something Katelyn seems to actually understand the gravity of and doesn’t comment on. She gives Aaron the moment to fix his face, looking over to offer Andrew a tiny, surprised smile, “Andrew.”

No pleasantries, no, they can’t. But acknowledgement is a step.

Neil brushes his pinky against Andrew’s and says nothing.


	18. On Sleeping and Communicating Affection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Also, Abby and Aaron have _A Moment_.)  
>  (Also, also, bonus in which Aaron makes a request.)

They do actually wind up buying sleeping mats.

Wymack offers, but they all insist they’d be useful enough to keep around outside of little space and buy their own, lugging them over when they first ask to stay the night.

Andrew sleeps against the wall, one arm around Kitty, one hand fisted in Neil’s clothes. Sometimes it’s not really sleep, but the closeness matters to both of them. It’s also a lot easier to wake Neil, whose movement wakes Andrew without violence, even on the rare nights where Neil is pressed all along the length of Andrew’s arm.

Sometimes it’s Allison curled into Neil’s back, sometimes Matt lies beside him under Dan and half under Renee, comfortably pressed flat by their weight.

Aaron generally stays curled around his dinosaur on the far edge, leaving the whole group in a “ _Minyard sandwich_ ” (a phrase which made Allison and Nicky laugh more than was really warranted). Nicky sleeps in a sprawl that leaves him touching as many people as are willing to not shove him off. Kevin comes to not exactly hate it, waking up half trapped under Nicky’s outstretched arm, but mostly tries to stick a comfortable distance from Aaron, or back to back with Dan, his lion tucked under his chin. There’s enough space for them to spread out, but they’ve given up the pretense of even trying.

Even in the space Abby makes for them to spread all across her living room, they still pile close together like it’s cold (it never is).

Touch starvation isn’t something any of them say, but they probably have more than a few poster children for the term.

So Wymack is giving more hugs than he’s gotten probably in all his years combined. Most of them to Matt, but Nicky and Dan are competing for a close second. He winds up regularly kissing the top of Renee’s head, much to her obvious delight. It delights everyone when he does the same to Kevin and Kevin hugs him in an attempt to hide his flushed face without actually moving away from Wymack. Aaron and Neil are not big on hugs, have yet to offer one, so Wymack makes a point to only touch their backs or hair, only one hand at a time.

And they never hug Andrew, never, never.

That much body contact sends him to a bad place, so Wymack says it expressly, _they will not hug Andrew_.

Andrew comes to be able to offer little touches though.

Allowing the others close enough to brush his shoulders with theirs, touching their fingers or knuckles together when they greet him. Andrew squeezing Wymack’s hand or holding his wrist is more like a hug than some hugs he’s experienced. Also, the fact that Andrew will let people hug Kitty when they want to hug him is not lost on anyone.

Then an interesting trend arises.

Neil is Andrew’s absolute favorite, a fact exactly nobody is surprised by. But it seems to surprise Neil every time he is reminded that the others like him, too, quite a bit in fact. He smiles more, now, Wymack even has a few pictures to prove it. Their casual touches, the smiles and sharing, the _outright stated_ affection seem to baffle and move him in turns.

The fact that he and Andrew are a unit of their own means that there’s some affection shifting between Andrew and the others, too.

“Goodnight!” Dan kisses Neil’s forehead, then after a pause, does it again. “That one’s for Drew. Pass it for me?”

Neil looks a little befuddled by that, but it’s the same pleasant sort of confused that always hits him when people are nice to him. He’s bright eyed and pink in the face when he turns to Andrew, tilts his head: _Yes or no?_

Andrew nods and Neil leans over to kiss his forehead. “That’s from Dani.”

Dan doesn’t get a response other than a brief flicker of Andrew’s gaze, but the fact that Andrew even let her through Neil has her beaming. Later, when he absently touches her elbow as he passes behind her, she smiles like she gets what it means.

It becomes a pattern.

Neil finds he really enjoys kisses and also enjoys kissing Andrew, so this arrangement works for him. Wymack still doesn’t say _touch starved_ , but watches this happen with growing amusement as Neil gets progressively more flustered. Andrew seems as indifferent as ever, but will occasionally respond by squeezing Neil’s hand, on rarer occasions, offering the others brief touches himself.

As far as Wymack has seen, the reverse only happens once.

“Drew,” Aaron says out of the blue. When Andrew turns to him, he squeezes Andrew’s hands between his, holds them to his chest. “That’s for Neil.”

Neil blinks at him, wide eyed, but as soon as Andrew turns to him he holds out his hands. Andrew squeezes Neil’s hands, doesn’t say anything, even when Neil leaves them there against Andrew’s heartbeat. For a moment, he looks like he’s going to speak to Andrew, but then he reconsiders, leaning around him to look at Aaron. “Thank you.”

Aaron shrugs uncomfortably and goes over to where Matt is playing _Rugrats Scavenger Hunt_ with Nicky.

Of all of them besides Andrew, Aaron seems the least prone to overtly affectionate touching. Incidental touching, sure, absent pats, sitting close together and not bothering to move, none of those seem like big deals anymore. The biggest change was he and Andrew holding hands, but beyond that, Aaron doesn’t often initiate contact.

So when Abby sees the way his eyes catch on her when she kisses Neil’s forehead, she pauses, watching the quick changes on his face. “You ok?”

Aaron comes closer, doesn’t say anything, just holds his dino tighter, so she thinks. She strokes Neil’s back with a smile before turning to face Aaron completely. “Would it be ok if I kissed your forehead?”

The others pause, but she doesn’t look at them right then. Her undivided attention seems to make Aaron waffle. He shrugs and Wymack wonders if his mother ever even _paused_ _to think_ about what she was doing to him.

Abby nods understandingly. “I’ll wait until you’re sure, ok? You don’t have to know right now.”

Aaron shakes his head, though, looking frustrated. “You’re not going to hurt me,” he says, and Neil moves away slowly, knows the significance of what Aaron’s feeling right now.

Abby knows it, too, doesn’t miss a beat. She shakes her head, “Wouldn’t dream of it, darling.”

It’d be less than two steps to put him in her space, but he stops and starts on his way to her side. She offers her hand when he’s close enough, tilts her head when he takes it. “Ok?”

Aaron nods jerkily, angles his head towards her and Abby presses a light, if lingering, kiss to his forehead.

Wymack watches with his throat tight as Aaron’s face breaks open, the steady rise of _about-to-cry_ eclipsing his expression. Abby notices, too, when she stands back, lowers her voice. “Would it be ok if I hugged you, Aaron?” she asks, and by the time she’s said his name, his face is in her shoulder. He doesn’t sob this time, but his whole body shakes as she gets her arms around him and rocks him, murmuring soothingly.

Abby casts him only the briefest of glances and Wymack understands, turns away. He intends to shoo the others along, but they seem to understand how important this is, too. They’ve already shifted, quietly watching _Blue’s Clues_ and talking to each other in low voices, Neil half pulled over Allison’s lap as she traces the shape of his ear.

Andrew doesn’t move from his spot against the side of the sofa, but he doesn’t stare either, isn’t coiled with violence. He likely can’t even hear what Abby is saying from here and Wymack is suddenly, _fiercely_ proud of his progress.

On a whim, when Andrew looks up at him, Wymack ruffles his hair affectionately. Andrew freezes instantly.

“Bad?” Wymack says, moving to take a cautious step back before Andrew catches his wrist. Wymack _wishes_ he spoke more, but he understands what it cost him to use words when nobody would listen. He lets Andrew hold his wrist. “Not going anywhere, just giving you space.”

Andrew stares at him.

“Sorry for touching before I asked,” Wymack apologizes. “Can you nod yes or no, is it okay if I touch your hair?”

Andrew doesn’t move for so long, Wymack starts to think he’s not going to get an answer. But he waits, and Andrew surprises him with a tiny nod, little more than a twitch. Wymack takes a breath, understanding that being asked anything is a gift. “That can be our hug, ok? I won’t put my arms around you, just my hand on your head, how’s that?”

Andrew doesn’t say anything, just puts Wymack’s hand back where it was and Wymack would tear down the world for them, he would. He loves his little nightmares more than anything in the world.

That night, Neil edges further into Matt’s space, welcomed into the curl of his arm so he looks right across his chest at Dan’s sleepy smile. Aaron lays along Neil’s back, eyes still sore from crying, already sagging towards sleep. Andrew watches him carefully right up until the lights go out.

Wymack sees, in the dim light of the streetlamp filtering from outside, how their hands find each other’s unerringly.

//\\\

“Teach me how to fight,” Aaron says in lieu of an actual greeting when he finds Matt and Neil having lunch together.

Matt pauses with is sandwich halfway into his mouth, glancing between Aaron and Neil who looks just as confused.

“Uh. I don’t have a death wish,” Matt answers finally.

Aaron sneers at him. “You teach _Josten_ ,” he says and sounds petulant enough that Neil wonders how old he actually is right now. He’s still more prone to speak to them when he’s feeling little.

“Yeah, but…” Matt starts, but doesn’t really have a good way to follow that up. Neil puts Andrew on just as much a hair trigger as Aaron does these days. “Huh!” he says, then turns back to Aaron, “Why?”

Anger is probably still Aaron’s default setting most days, so it’s not a surprise to see it on his face seemingly without cause. But then he reigns it in enough for Neil to see how uncomfortable he is. “He’d go to prison for me,” he says and neither of them have to ask who he means. “I want to be able to stand between him and that future.”

“He’d have to think you would protect yourself,” Neil concludes. Aaron shoots him a look, prickly at being so easily pegged, but of course he was. Neil knows the feeling.

Aaron nods unsteadily, turning back to Matt. “And you. You’re. Good?” He winces, looking down and then shutting his eyes for good measure. “I mean, you did a good job with Josten and. I don’t think you’d really—If we fought, you wouldn’t—”

“No, I wouldn’t really hurt you,” Matt finishes for him, firmly enough that Aaron snaps to look at him. “It _is_ gonna hurt, though.”

“I get the difference,” Aaron agrees. “So you’ll do it?”

Matt eyes him, before he shrugs. “Yeah, sure,” he mumbles. “I should start charging.”

Aaron glares at him. “I’ll get you through your science classes in exchange, how’s that, Boyd?”

“Deal,” Matt flips him off. “Tell Andrew first, though. I’m not getting my hands cut off over your bruised knuckles.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Aaron replies, waving them both off with a huff. It’s more of a parting than they’d have gotten a few months ago.

Neil also wouldn’t have spoken up a few months ago. “We could spar,” he blurts, suddenly embarrassed as Aaron turns back to him, surprised. “I’m not. I’m not as good as Matt. But I can get away from almost anyone.” He grumbles when Matt reaches over to mess up his hair.

“Yeah, he’s a squirmy little thing,” Matt agrees. “Come around next time we train, alright? I’ll ref.”

Aaron nods, then, looking just as uncomfortable and touched as Neil feels. “Sure thing. I’ll-I’ll text you,” he replies, and this time manages to get away without being called back.

They watch him go, but Neil turns back to take in the considering look on Matt’s face, thinking of how neither of them have ever had brothers before, but _Matt and Neil are brothers_ and maybe have other brothers, too _._

“You’d risk prison for us, too,” Neil accuses, unsure of how that makes him feel. Loved, comes to mind.

That gets him an uncomfortable but also unapologetic shrug. “Wouldn’t you?” Matt asks, shoves some chips in his mouth.

Neil would do anything, finds that sentiment—the fact that it _is_ sentiment—doesn’t feel as absurd as it would’ve last year. He’d risk anything to keep the Foxes safe. Still, he twists his face, “I’d rather not, honestly.”

Matt laughs and it’s one of Neil’s favorite sounds.

They both know that wasn’t a no.


	19. About Little Foxes: Kevin (And Dan (And Dads)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long chapter alert! I had it broken up but that left one little bit dangling awkwardly by itself, so here we have a mega chapter.

Kevin slips up first, because of course he does.

It’s one of the rare days—after a clean game with a good win—that Kevin is not feeling particularly quiet. They’re all hyper with it, laughing and joking with each other from the moment they win all the way back to the locker room. The giddiness on their faces is so unshielded, Wymack can’t help but feel a little paternal towards them, talking to them like they’re small as soon as they’re out of the spotlight.

They’re all sitting around, chatting and stuffing their faces on the floor, Wymack and Abby sitting at the table eating like civilized adults, a comment that makes Abby swat his arm. But the kids are occupied, and Wymack is content to watch her and watch them and just generally have a good night.

At some point, Allison tickles Kevin.

Whether or not she meant to, the jerk of his body when she touches him is unmistakable, as is the way he flushes when he tries to disguise it. All bets are off when _that smile_ stretches across her face, followed shortly by Matt and Nicky, seconds before Kevin finds himself in a dogpile. He makes a good show of trying to snake away from their wriggling fingers, even as he actually laughs, loud and breathless in a way Wymack has never heard.

“Don’t break my furniture!” Wymack shouts, but makes no move to stop them. Andrew and Neil have perched carefully out of the way, Aaron coming over when Abby extends an arm, completely ignoring the open chair to sit perched on the edge of hers.

Kevin turns at the sound of Wymack’s voice, giggling as he struggles free. “Dad—!” he starts, but then his voice clips off when Wymack looks up at him.

“Yeah?” he replies evenly, trying to keep the way his heart wrenched in his chest off his face. He thinks he is mostly successful. Kevin doesn’t say anything for a second, though, just staring at him, shocked. Nobody’s moving. He puts his beer down and turns to face him completely. “Kev?”

“…Dad?” he repeats, and it wobbles in his mouth and Wymack is up and coming towards him. His face isn’t steady anymore, but he doesn’t care, he _can’t_ , this is his _son_.

“Yeah, kid, that’s me.”

“ _Dad_ ,” Kevin repeats, wheezing with the beginnings of a panic attack.

Wymack shushes him, wrapping him up close as he starts to shake. “I’m right here,” he promises, looking out over the others who stare without shame or pity, but maybe with some sympathetic heartache. “I got you, Kev, breathe with me, ok?”

And Kevin does, slows his breathing to the same long, even pulls as Wymack’s.

If he gets a little underfoot that night, lingering close to Wymack’s side, just _looking at him_ like he’s brand new and amazing, Wymack doesn’t say a world about it.

He just holds his son’s hand and barks out the same gruff affection as always.

//\\\

By next practice, Kevin is being a piece of shit, but what’s new?

It wouldn’t be a practice without the sound of Kevin yelling, something Dan has accepted into her idea of what training means. There wasn’t ever really a point when it bothered her, but they’ve gotten closer and she’s learned to pick apart the differences in Kevin’s tone. They’re doing well today, but the last little night has thrown him off. He gets sharp when he’s sulky and Wymack cut into him about it which does _nothing_ to help. Dan stands and watches this with something like amusement, they’re so _dumb_ sometimes. Sure, they’re not little now, but some things don’t have to change just because they _aren’t_ , especially if it’d make the going easier.

So she showers quickly and waits outside of the men’s locker room. Matt kisses her on his way past (so does Nicky, actually), before getting jostled along by Allison and Renee. She bumps The Twins’ knuckles and ruffles Neil’s hair, tells them to go on without her. When Kevin steps out, still a little tight around the mouth, Dan holds out her arms.

Kevin glances around guardedly, like there’d be anyone in here but them, but comes forward without question. She doesn’t laugh because it’s really not funny that when he’s big, he still hugs like he’s never been hugged before. “Rough day?”

That cuts his wires a bit and he sags against her. “I wasn’t _that_ hard on anyone.”

“Coach might say otherwise,” Dan replies, holds onto him when he tenses like he might stand up. “Hey, come on, what’s going on?”

They breathe together until Kevin can find the voice to say. “I don’t know how to have a dad,” he admits, then pulls back just enough to look at her. “I don’t know how to do this.”

Dan blinks at the desperate, questioning look on his face and laughs a little. “Are you asking _me?_ I don’t know either, Kevin!”

Kevin shakes his head. “He’s your dad, too. In the ways that count.”

Oh, that stings a little because of course she thinks of him that way. She hadn’t known it’d been quite so obvious though. It makes her feel a little squirmy, but Kevin holds onto her hands when she leans back, doesn’t let go even when she looks away. “I have no right to ask him that,” she says very quietly.

“Neither do I,” Kevin whispers.

Dan startles at that. “Of course you do, he’s—” She stops when she notices the tiny smirk on his mouth. “Kevin Day, are you playing _mind games_ with me?”

It makes Kevin look juvenile, when he looks down at their hands, rocking back on his heels with a flush high on his cheeks. “You’re my sister, Dani,” he looks at her from under his lashes, “of course we share a dad.”

Dan feels herself warm, eyes suddenly welling as she smiles up at him. “Ok, Kev.”

Kevin takes a moment to wipe his thumb under her eye, a motion more tender than she ever would’ve pegged him capable of when they first met. She laughs, throwing her arms around his neck. “Just talk to him,” she says, then because she trusts Wymack, adds, “I promise, it’ll be ok.”

“I believe you,” Kevin confesses and—

“Good, ‘cause I’m right,” Dan says and he waits until she’s looking at him to roll his eyes.

So he makes it through the after practice meeting, doesn’t miss the way Dan herds the others out, leaving him alone on the sofa. He doesn’t smile when Neil looks back at him, but manages to lift the side of his mouth— _I’m ok, go ahead_ —and Andrew believes him. He crowds Neil out the door, Aaron following without a word.

Wymack, knowingly, stays propped up against the wall. “Something on your mind?” he asks. Kevin stands up, too, wipes his hands on his pants nervously. He trusts Dan and trusts Wymack and doesn’t have any reason to be afraid, none at all.

Kevin could just about vomit though.

“Off the court,” he starts haltingly. “Not just when I’m…” He points his hands out in front of his chest, moves like he might clap but doesn’t; Signs, [ _little._ ] “Is it ok to call you dad?”

Wymack is going to have to _not_ cry every time Kevin says that, but he’ll get there, especially if he gets desensitized. “Of course, I _am_ your dad,” he says, then when he sees Kevin sag with relief even as he still shifts anxiously, “You can hug me, too, you dummy.”

It’s not the lingering sort of hug Kevin might give when he’s feeling little, but a quick public hug has it’s own level of intimacy.

\\\//

Kevin keeps thinking all week about Dan, about how he hadn’t meant to say it but absolutely meant it that she is his sister. There’s still the anxious little thought that he doesn’t know what he’s doing, has never really known how to have _friends_ , let alone a family, but he wants to try. For all of them, _all of them_ he’s willing to put himself out there.

Foxes have a lot of things in common, bravery strongest among them.

“Dad…” Kevin says, and his heart still trips a little, but it’s not fear, not really. He’s learned joy can stagger your pulse just as thoroughly.

“Princess…” Wymack sings back, because Kevin didn’t get the ‘ _little shit_ ’ in him from nowhere. But he opens up his arm when Kevin nervously shuffles over to him, “What’s up?”

Kevin looks back at the others, the foxes. His Dad’s Foxes. “Can I…” he looks up at Wymack, “share you? _Dad?_ ” he emphasizes.

The fact that Wymack doesn’t even look remotely confused is telling, but the soft pride on his face makes Kevin’s heart soar. “Share me, huh?” he looks out past Kevin, at his other foxes’ anticipatory faces, and sighs dramatically. “Damn, nine kids? I gotta learn to wrap it up…”

“ _David!_ ” Abby exclaims, aghast as though there were truly little ears to overhear. All the other faces in the room light up, though.

“ _Can we?_ ” Nicky asks, eyes wide but his face is already opening up into a grin.

Wymack shrugs. “Long as you remember you don’t _have_ to,” he says, “I like being called Coach, too.”

“ _Too,_ ” Nicky bouncing in place is the only warning they get before he’s up and crashing into Wymack and Kevin. “Dad!”

Renee is giggling as she joins Nicky, shakes her head excitedly against his back. “Dad’s nice!”

Allison comes over at a more sedate pace. “Your kids are gross, Coach,” she says.

“You realize that includes you?” Matt says, coming up behind her, then, “ _Coach, she pinched me!_ ”

“Are you serious right now?” Aaron says, but he doesn’t look anything but amused.

Neil comes over to put his forehead against Wymack’s back, silent in his thanks. Andrew doesn’t say anything either, face still impassive, but when Wymack passes his gaze over him, he raises his hand. Thumb to his forehead, wiggling his fingers like he’s making fun, but Kevin knows he’s not. The look on Wymack’s face says he knows it, too.

“Dad?” Dan calls, sounding quite small and lost.

Kevin looks at her and is lucky to watch her face break into a teary grin when Wymack says, “Yeah, Dani.” She gets to Kevin first so he catches her with a shy smile, curls her into the space between he and Wymack, Nicky opening up easily to let her.

“Dad!” she says, can’t stop laughing against Wymack’s chest.

Kevin knows what love looks like, right then, he knows for sure.

It’s all over Wymack’s face.


	20. About Little Foxes: Allison and Andrew

Allison walks in holding Andrew’s hand and visibly fuming, which throws Wymack for such a loop he doesn’t know what to say at first, forgets to even greet them.

Andrew looks a little amused by this, though the amusement dims some when Allison tears up, turning to look at him. “This is…” she stomps her foot, blinks at the ceiling, lip trembling and knuckles white around Andrew’s.

“Alli?” Renee starts, concerned.

“You’re a little monster,” she says, voice whiny and stressed as she glares at Andrew, “but you’re ours, you’re _mine_. Nobody else gets to talk about you like that.”

Wymack doesn’t know who said what, but he can guess it was ugly. It’d be an understatement to say Andrew doesn’t have many fans. “What happened, Alli?” he asks, but before she can answer, Andrew speaks.

“I’m not anybody’s,” he says, face abruptly drained of amusement, vacant.

That does not deter Allison, who shakes her head. “You’re ours, _mine_ ,” she says again, scrubbing at her cheek when her tears overflow. “We can hate each other’s guts all we want, but that doesn’t change—”

“ _I’m not anybody’s_ ,” Andrew reiterates taking a step away from her, but not wrenching his hand out of hers. She doesn’t loosen her grip.

“We’re _foxes,_ none of us are anybody’s!” she snaps, but then her face crumbles again. “How the hell else do you think we wound up belonging to each other? To…?” her gaze cuts over to Wymack.

Andrew doesn’t say a word to that, just stares at her, then down at the bruising grip she’s got on his hand. “Allison,” he says softly, a warning that isn’t quite a threat, too faint and confused.

“Ok, hon, come on,” Wymack murmurs softly, finally unfreezing to put a gentle hand on Allison’s back. He grabs her arm, but doesn’t tug her, just holds her. “We can talk without touching, right?”

Allison jerks to look down like she’d forgotten she even had his hand. When she lets go, she steps unsteadily back into Wymack. “Sorry,” she wipes her face. “I was feeling little when I saw you. And they were being mean.”

Andrew’s gaze roams her face before he cuts his eyes over to Neil. Whatever silent communication passes between them is lost on Wymack, but Neil gets up and slides between Allison and Andrew. Not protectively, not like Andrew needs a barrier from her. But like Andrew knew what she needed and couldn’t do it.

Neil is still a little awkward about hugs, but he’s getting better, easier in his motions. Case in point, he gets his arms around Allison, presses their foreheads together without looking like a stiff. “They don’t matter,” he tells her quietly, “Why would they matter?”

And Wymack thinks the question is specifying _‘to someone like Andrew’_ or maybe even Neil himself, but he can’t be quite sure. Either way it makes Allison sniffle, nod slightly, “They’re stupid.”

“Yeah,” Neil agrees, then flushes as he kisses the corner of her eye. “Don’t think about them anymore.”

“It wasn’t them I was thinking about,” Allison says softly, but she smiles at him, kisses his cheek twice. “Pass that for me?”

Neil does as asked, Andrew’s eyes never leaving Allison even as he sways slightly into Neil’s kiss.

As a matter of fact, Andrew watches her that whole day—the way Renee sticks to her side, the way Nicky takes her hands and makes her dance, the way Kevin lets her lay on him while he colors. It’s just watching until they’re about to go to sleep when he grabs her wrist.

(He can’t say anything, it’s cost him everything to even _want_ before, but…)

Wymack’s throat closes up on him when Andrew puts Allison’s hand in his hair. They stare at each other for a long minute, Allison tearing up again before she nods, gently petting his hair and pulling her hand back.

That night, Andrew holds Pepper the Pony as he sleeps and Allison cuddles Kitty.

//\\\

Allison startles when she opens her door to find Andrew standing right outside.

“What the _fuck,_ Minyard? I—” she catches sight of his face and her startled anger dims, confused, _concerned_ and Andrew doesn’t know what to do when people _actually_ care about him, it makes them seem unreal. “Drew?”

Andrew shakes his head, because, no, he isn’t little right now, but he wants her anyway. He’d already come to accept her presence as tolerable, but at some point her absence had become _noticed_ without being exactly _welcome_. For him, that’s saying a lot, so he doesn’t say it. This isn’t an apology, either, because regret is a fucking waste of time and he isn’t sorry, not really. So, he doesn’t mince words, states it plainly:

“If anyone hurts you, I’ll break their fucking neck.”

The instant recognition on her face, means the weight of this statement is not lost on her.

When Allison claimed Andrew as one of them, one of _hers_ , it hadn’t been said lightly. But she knows how heavy something like this is for Andrew, how much caring has cost him before and it’s almost enough to make her cry. Instead, she swallows, and remembers Wymack’s rules. “Can I touch you?”

“How?” Andrew says.

“My forehead on yours.”

“No.”

“My hand in your hair?”

Andrew nods, tilting his head towards her.

She plays with his hair for a few seconds before drawing back, always careful never to skirt the limits of his patience. When she hears the elevator ding at the end of the hall, she abruptly doesn’t have the patience for anyone else right now. “You keep this up, I’m going to expect matching tramp stamps,” she mutters and he’s already back at his door by the time she closes hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few things!
> 
> Initially, I only had one more chapter after this one (for this part of the series), but I got an ask on tumblr and…well, basically, outlined a whole other chapter, so I’m going to add that on here as well! Hopefully I can clean it up by Wednesday! (Thank you for the suggestion, nonie!)
> 
> That said! I do have a tumblr, BUT LISTEN much like the rest of my Ao3, my tumblr is mostly **kinky/gross/dark Supernatural stuff** that you darling little foxes are probably not interested in. If you’re feeling shy and want to ask something anonymously, by all means, but probably don’t scroll down! (Asks will be tagged #TFC // or #TUK)


	21. About Little Foxes: Neil (And Hugs)

Neil notices what Wymack is doing, even if he doesn’t realize why he’s doing it at first.

Wymack has always been careful with him, just like he promised from the start. There are times when he raises his voice, but he’s careful not to shout, not really, and never at Neil. His touches are always, _always_ kind and obvious before they land; he never touches Neil without Neil seeing him coming.

The thing is, recently he keeps finding himself in Wymack’s space.

And Wymack doesn’t make a big deal about it, _he’s_ not the one with _A Thing_ about touch. If Neil comes over to him, he makes space for him, he holds whatever he’s doing so Neil can see, offers him some of whatever he’s eating; he doesn’t even look surprised by it. Eventually, Neil doesn’t have to go towards Wymack, he just turns and he’s _there_.

Of course, he’s always there for the others, too. Kevin calling Wymack dad comes easier every time he does it, same with Nicky and Dan. Andrew and Aaron have found their own orbit around Wymack, Aaron biting back a smile when Wymack clumsily Signs at them. Renee has always been peaceable to Neil, but there’s something about her that seems settled in a human sort of way instead of a spiritual one. Something in her casual contact with Wymack has made her brighter. They’re all getting something out of this.

Then it hits Neil that some little kids _do_ get this.

They get to have a family that takes time to look _at_ them, _individually_ and not make it feel dangerous. They get cared for and hugged, fed and laid down to sleep somewhere warm and soft every night. There are kids out there in the world who have siblings and still feel like the most loved little kid in the whole world. They get to live their lives now, however hard they may be crying over their skinned knee or the torn stitch on their stuffed elephant, and still calm down because _everything is ok._ They can still believe it when their dad says, “ _Hey now, I’m here, I got you, sweetie_ ” or “ _You’re always gonna be my little princess_ ” or “ _Maybe we’ll go to Disney next summer._ ”

Well, Wymack actually says “ _after your first pro season_ ” which is a ways off, but still, Neil _believes_ him. He’s teasing, but he’s not _joking_ ; Wymack would actually go with them to _Disney World_ , and that thought makes Neil’s head spin a little.

Actually, it’s that thought that makes Neil realize why he’s saying it.

After spending almost his whole life thinking three steps ahead of his feet, Nathaniel has never had the luxury of things he couldn’t drop, things he _wouldn’t_ leave behind if pressed. Now, _Neil Josten_ does. Wymack has given him that, given them all little trinkets that will remind them of what they had here, allow them to take their little space anywhere they may go. He’s holding them closer and talking to them like they’re special, so they know he really, _truly_ believes they’re special to him.

But the offhanded, future-tense comments are to make sure they know he isn’t holding them tighter as a way to say goodbye. He’s doing it just because he wants to, wants to feel them close, wants to have that. And in spite of the tone, Wymack isn’t being casual in his statements, not at all, Neil gets that now. He’s letting them know he’ll be there in the long run before they can even question it.

This is theirs, nobody and nothing, not even distance, will take this family from them.

Neil hadn’t realized that was something he was afraid of until he realizes Wymack had been fighting that fear for him all along.

“Doing ok, Neil?” Wymack asks and, oh, Neil’s staring, isn’t he? But Wymack is right there, how could he not?

Tonight, he’s looking up at Wymack as he rubs the scar cream Allison had suggested onto his face. He’s standing close, right up in Neil’s space as he works, but his hands are as gentle as he’d promised and Neil feels… For a bright, shining moment, Neil feels like a little kid who can still believe in good things. He’s not scared at all, he’s not hurt. It doesn’t matter that Wymack is bigger and older than him, it doesn’t matter that his stubble is starting to grey or that his voice is loud without trying; this man is safe and Neil is safe with him.

“Yeah,” Neil says, because he _is_ ok, he’s more than ok. When Wymack sets the tub aside, Neil catches him by the shirttail, doesn’t dwell on how that feels a little needy. It’s safe to need Wymack a little. “Coach?”

“Yeah, kid?” Wymack replies, with the same affection he has when he’s called dad. It sends warmth all the way down to Neil’s toes.

“I’m kinda…” Neil looks at his hand clenched in Wymack’s shirt, processes the fact that he did it without thinking, without worrying about being hit for it. He doesn’t know what he’s feeling. He blinks up at Wymack, “Can I hug you?”

Wymack eyes him curiously, rubbing the excess moisturizer into his own hands. “Are you forcing yourself to?”

Neil isn’t sure if he shakes his head or nods, quite honestly. “I want to hug you,” he confesses.

Nodding, Wymack accepts that without comment, but still moves slowly, telegraphing his movements the whole way. He elects to come at Neil sort of sideways, looping one arm around his shoulders instead of holding him in both. Neil thinks that’s rather kind of him until it’s actually happening and his breath stalls in his throat, something cold splashing down the inside of his ribs.

It makes him turn suddenly, chest to chest, face into Wymack’s shoulder. “Two arms please,” he gasps shakily and Wymack does.

“Neil?” he says, soft but sharp, concerned.

“That’s ‘ _be quiet_ ’,” Neil chokes out, a truth he’d forgotten, wants to be rid of. “One arm is ‘ _be quiet, sit still, smile or when they leave, I’m gonna_ —’” Taking a big breath, he shakes his head against Wymack’s shoulder. He wraps his shaking arms around him because this isn’t his _father_ and he’s allowed to do that, he’s _welcome_ to. “You’re not going to hurt me.”

“No,” Wymack agrees, careful to keep the anger out of his voice as he strokes Neil’s back. “You’re Neil Josten, _my_ kid, and I’m never gonna hurt you.”

Neil shuts his eyes as Wymack drops a kiss to the top of his head, rocking him gently. “I know,” he says, then, “I’m sor—”

“We’re not watching _Dora_ if you apologize for that,” Wymack phrases the threat softly enough that Neil smiles.

“Sorry,” he says against Wymack’s shirt.

“Wiseass,” Wymack grumbles.

“ _Swear jar!!_ ” Matt and Nicky shout from the other room.

Wymack turns over his shoulder. “What a buncha _busybodies_ , shut it!” he barks and the way his voice rumbles through his chest is weirdly comforting. Neil turns so his ear is pressed over Wymack’s heart. “As I was _saying…_ ”

Neil huffs out a laugh. “I’ll be ok,” he says. “Even… I’ll be ok,” he stops before he can think too far ahead, he doesn’t want to. He wants to think about how he’s not shaking as much, how he feels good and safe right here in Wymack’s arms.

“I know you will,” Wymack says, but then lowers his voice, squeezing Neil just a bit tighter. “But it’s ok if you’re scared, too. You can be scared and still make it through. I’ll do what I gotta to remind you you’re always safe with me.” His hand comes up to cradle the back of Neil’s head, “And no matter where you go, I’ll be right there with you, baby.”

Neil feels tears prickling his eyes, an unfamiliar and startling sensation. He hides his face in Wymack’s shoulder, clutching tighter at his back. “I know,” he says, because he does.

Neil knows what Wymack is doing, what he’s prepping him for, and to be honest, it scares him to death, it scares _the hell_ out of him. But Coach—who has never hit him and held him close and gave him a family who calls him _Neil_ and nothing else—hasn’t let him down yet. He’s scared, he can’t help that. But Coach…

“I know, Dad.”

Neil trusts that Wymack will make sure he’s _ready_ , too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! This was originally the last chapter, however, I got a suggestion that has turned into a bonus chapter, hooray! …I just haven’t finished it yet, whoops. The plan is to post it Friday!


	22. Bonus: Chewies and Pacies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm late! It's very early in the morning and I should be asleep! But, by golly, mama ain't raise no quitter!

The thing is, Neil and Aaron are genuinely trying to make nice with one another.

The fact that they’re both anticipating being permanent fixtures in Andrew’s life going forward would have been enough of a reason. But between that, little space, and sparring with Matt, they’d come to an actual tentative friendship with one another. It took a lot of awkward circling at first, of figuring out what it even means to _be_ friends with someone, but now they’re at a point where they are genuinely happy to see each other for no more reason than to see each other.

Neil is sitting in class, mostly thinking with a weird mix of pride and annoyance about the bruise on his side from where Aaron had snuck in a proper jab, when a motion across the aisle catches his attention. The girl hasn’t done anything particularly conspicuous, but the way she started to put a pen into her mouth only to catch herself and drop it abruptly on the table is familiar.

Aaron has showed up—as promised—to help Matt study for his science classes. More than once, Neil has tagged along to these sessions and noticed Aaron tends to chew his pens. Only for a few seconds generally, before he catches himself, and wipes it off in disgust. Neil isn’t really sure grinding his teeth is any better for him, but he’s been tactful enough to pretend he doesn’t notice either action. But now he’s thinking about it again, because as soon as the girl puts down her pen she puts her bracelet into her mouth instead. Neil only has a second to be confused by that before he realizes that the bracelet sort of… well, it looks like it was made to be chewed on. It makes sense, he guesses; pen chewing isn’t exactly a rare habit, so having something else to occupy your mouth that you won’t put down or pass to someone else is a pretty brilliant concept. …He can’t help but think, in the spirit of friendship, he should get one for Aaron.

Right up until class ends he’s trying to think of a good way to approach her to ask about it.

“Where did you get your bracelet?” is probably a little too aggressive of a conversation starter, but Neil doesn’t realize that until she startles, whipping around to look at him with alarm written all over her face. “Sorry?” he offers with a polite smile, “I just noticed you biting it and—” Well, shit, that was the wrong way to go, she’s starting to look panicked now, _uh…_ “—and I was wondering where to get one?” he hurries to finish.

“You—? Oh,” she says and eyes him, face coloring. Neil knows he isn’t the best at being comforting, least of all to strangers, but at the very least he hopes his face indicates he isn’t asking just to harass her. Whatever she sees must be enough, because she turns to face him a little less guardedly. “It’s from a chewelry site…” she says, holding it up for him to see closer.

“Chewelry?” he repeats and, yeah, it looks like it could withstand some chewing. “Clever.” That makes her laugh. “Is that the only kind they sell?”

“No, I have a necklace, too,” she confides eagerly, now that she’s convinced he’s not making fun. “It’s like a little Lego brick! I can fit it all the way in my mouth, so—” she babbles, but then stops, looking abruptly sheepish. “So. It’s—uh, I mean. It’s cool, you know? Or, well, not _cool_ , but.”

“It’s ok, I follow,” Neil says, shrugging, “Whatever works, right?”

She laughs nervously, relieved. “At least it’s not a pacifier, right?”

…It doesn’t mean anything, Neil _knows_ she doesn’t mean anything by it, but as soon as she says it, his mind goes a little fuzzy. Because, yeah, maybe a college student with a pacifier doesn’t make sense, but what about a _little_ with a pacifier? The idea hits him so hard it sticks.

Andrew doesn’t really like to speak when he’s little and as soon as he has that thought, Neil’s heart twists in his chest because Drew would be _darling_ with a pacifier. Then he remembers seeing a little girl, years ago, looking at him with bright eyes and a “ _Little Princess_ ” pacifier in her mouth. Kevin, he thinks, could stand to have his mouth occupied when he’s feeling awkward and fussy and _Kevin is their little princess._

“Yeah,” he agrees absently, probably a little too slowly judging by the confusion on his classmate’s face. He shrugs at her, because he’s not familiar with shame, but he’s not going to ask a complete stranger if you can get pacifiers for adults. “So just search chewelry?”

“Yep!” she confirms happily. “Hope you find something you like!”

Neil thanks her and is on his way before he realizes it would’ve been polite to ask her name. He’s eager through all the rest of his classes and practice, but manages to hold it together until he’s back to the dorm. Nicky let him set up his own profile on his laptop, so he doesn’t worry too much about his history when he opens up the browser, homework tossed aside for the moment.

The sights are so bright and friendly looking, Neil feels himself slipping towards little space just looking at it. There’re all sorts of explanations and questions and testimonials, but none of them catch his attention like brightly colored plastic. He hasn’t been scrolling long at all when he sees a necklace with a pendant in the shape of a dinosaur track and feels excitement bloom in his chest. He’s never felt strongly about shopping, but it feels good to have found something he thinks Aaron would like.

Browsing for Andrew makes him a little more nervous, because a pacifier is _a lot_ to think about, but he figures Andrew might like chewelry, too. He’s decided to stick to that site for a while when the pirate coin in the _Suggested Items_ list catches his eye and he starts thinking about Dan. She doesn’t really chew things, but he _has_ seen her with the strings of her hoodies between her lips when she’s thinking. Then it occurs to him that sometimes, around naps or when he’s nervous, Neil’s seen Nicky with his fingers or Bun-Bun’s ears in his mouth. Things star snowballing and eventually the giddy feeling in his chest starts to feel more like nerves, because everyone, all the foxes should get something, but Neil is suddenly feeling too little to figure that out right now.

Wymack has always told them if their little space ever stops feeling good, to take a step back from whatever was making it un-comfy. Looking at all this, knowing he’s allowed to buy it isn’t enough to let him know _he’s really allowed to buy it._ It feels almost like he’s doing something wrong, but… He never really feels wrong when Allison shops for him. Also, Allison can hold water better than Nicky, so he figures it’d be better to ask her about this.

The tears that spring to Allison’s eyes startle him almost as much as the high pitched sound she lets out.

“Alli,” he starts, concerned, but then she’s tossed her arms around him.

“That’s so sweet, _Neeeil_ , holy _shit_ ,” Allison cries, drawing his name out against his shoulder as she bounces in place. “Yes, yes, do it!! I’m stealing the idea, too, I love it!”

“It’s really ok?” Neil asks quietly, playing with his fingers behind her back. He _knows_ it is, but he’s a little _little_ and nervous and Alli won’t lie to him. She’ll also kiss his cheek and grin at him.

“Yeah, gosh, you’re so freakin’ cute,” she kisses him again, “Cover the Monsters, I got the others. We’re doing this.”

Allison’s giddiness is as contagious as it is enabling, so shortly after she shoos him out the door, he orders the chewelry he’d been looking at. He’s in the middle of looking at pacifiers when he suddenly wants one so bad he aches a little, sticking his own finger in his mouth. This endeavor hadn’t really been about him, but he’s _allowed to have things_ now; he wants a pacifier so he’s getting one (or, well, three as it were).

However, as soon as he hits “Confirm Order” and sees the estimated arrival date pop up on screen, a little jolt of panic sparks through his chest. It’s a mindless, stupid thing; he hasn’t done anything _wrong_ , but for some reason he finds himself on the verge of an actual freak out. His instinct is to turn to Andrew, but he’s out with Renee and Kevin’s the only one home and _he can’t tell Kevin what’s wrong, so—_

Neil stands up, fumbling for his phone to call his Dad.

“ _What, Josten?_ ” Wymack answers gruffly.

“Coach,” Neil says and his voice is jittering all over the place. He squeezes the back of his own neck to try and calm himself. “ _Dad_ , I bought pacifiers?”

There’s a long stretch of silence then—“ _…what?_ ” And he doesn’t sound angry, or disappointed, just perplexed. It gives Neil the strength to keep talking.

“I bought—There was this girl in class and—” It takes Neil a few minutes to get the story out, but he’s winding himself up tighter the whole way through until Wymack cuts him off.

“ _Neil, listen to me,_ ” Wymack says gently, “ _I think that’s real sweet of you. Even if Kevin or the others don’t want to_ use _them, I’m sure they’ll appreciate what it stands for, that you were thinking about them._ ” Then he chuckles, “ _And you’ll be cute as hell with yours, too. Don’t worry, ok?_ ”

Letting Wymack’s voice wash over him does chase some of the weird anxiety out of his breathing. He flushes, feeling a little silly now. “I—ok,” he says, taking a deep breath and uncurling from where he’d hunched in on himself. “Sorry, I just got…overwhelmed.”

“ _Don’t worry about it, baby,_ ” Wymack says and Neil’s panic is replaced with a flutter of embarrassed pleasure. “ _I’m happy to help._ ”

The rest of the day passes more easily, even if he keeps feeling weird sparks of anticipation when he remembers the package he’s waiting on. He doesn’t say anything to the others, even if he’s sure Andrew notices the weird pep in his mood.

It takes about a week for the package to show up, but when he finally gets a text to come pick it up down stairs he’s about to shake apart with nerves. The box itself is discreet as promised so he doesn’t have a _stroke_ when he takes it from the mailroom attendant, but coming into the dorm with it is _not_ subtle. Neil basically never buys things unless pressed, has _never_ ordered things to his own address—old habits die hard—and Nicky is _nosy_. He asks about it as soon as Neil comes in the door. “ _Ooh,_ what’s that!”

“It’s, uh… for you?” Neil doesn’t even know where to begin to explain beyond that, standing there awkwardly with all eyes suddenly on him. He sits the box in a chair and rips it open.

Nicky looks surprised by that. “For _me?_ ”

“All of you,” Neil says, _mumbles_ , really, because he can feel his heartbeat in his throat. “I just… I wanted to get Aaron some chewelry and I got carried away.”

“Chewelry?” Aaron asks, but holds his hand out when Neil offers him the package with the blue dinosaur track inside.

“It’s jewelry you can chew on,” Neil explains without looking at him, “I just thought, you know, since we’re… we’re _littles_ , it’d be nice to have something that...”

Aaron looks a little pink now, but he blinks up at Neil wonderingly. “You noticed the pens,” he says and before Neil can say anything, he looks back down at his necklace. “ _Huh!_ I—Thanks. You got other stuff?”

“Yeah, but…” Neil looks down in the box and sees the pink guard around Kevin’s pacifier and has to rip this bandage off quick before he loses the nerve.

Kevin nearly chokes when he sees the _honest to goodness_ pacifier in Neil’s hands, but before Neil can fix his mouth to apologize Kevin’s face just _crumbles_. He looks so woundingly little and exposed when Neil puts it in his hands, when it’s close enough for him to read “ _Daddy’s Lil’ Princess_ ” on the top, that Neil swallows his apology back. He knows what raw want looks like.

Andrew hasn’t said anything to this point, doesn’t say anything even when Neil walks over and hands him the pacifier—the one that says “ _Lil Monster_ ” on the back—and an arrowhead pendant chewelry. If he didn’t know better, Neil would think Andrew is consciously trying not to make a big deal about it. But Neil _does_ know better, can tell by the way Andrew— _Drew_ stares down at them, before staring at Neil that he’s just trying to process that this is _real._ Neil understands the feeling, meets his eyes before turning to Nicky, who grins.

“Me too?” he asks.

“Uh-huh,” Neil says and smiles even as he cringes when Nicky screams at the heart eyes emoji pendant. He makes a token sound of protest when Nicky hugs him, presses noisy kisses to his face, but he’s not bothered. Nicky’s excitement is endearingly familiar and Neil’s at the point where he can enjoy that kind of contact. Also, Nicky has a way of taking attention from people who don’t want it all anyway; Neil feels better in his spotlight with Nicky beside him.

“Oh, I love it, it’s _perfect_ ,” Nicky exclaims, standing back to hold Neil by the cheeks. “You’re so fucking sweet, thank you very, _very_ much, cutie! What’d you get?”

And, see, Neil hadn’t had any plans to get anything… _thematic_. He’d just wanted something to put in his mouth, something plain but it’s for _little Neil._ It’s for a time when he’s a toddler, wearing a onesie and holding a stuffed animal, it’s going to be a part of his little space. Why _not_ make it something quirky?

“This one,” he says shyly, showing Nicky the paci with the little mute symbol on the top. He’s feeling very small and sweet at the moment, so when Nicky laughs and awes, he hides his face in Nicky’s shoulder. He doesn’t look up until he hears Kevin’s chair scraping back.

Kevin is still a lovely shade of pink when he stands, not quite meeting anyone’s eyes. Still, he walks over to squeeze Neil’s hand. “I’m gonna ask Dad for a onesie day,” he says, nodding to the back rooms for privacy. It doesn’t look quite like he’s going to cry, but some emotion has gotten him so close it’s creaking in his voice, stealing any further explanation. Neil just nods and squeezes back, lets him go.

“I’m gonna open mine!” Nicky exclaims, turning their eyes back to him. “Aaron, do you want me to wash yours for you?”

Aaron goes pouty, like he’s about to say he’s not little right now, but even without talking about it, they all know Nicky is a little bigger than Aaron. It feels like he should be the one who can reach the sink and wash the toys. “Yea,” he says quietly, takes Nicky’s hand when he wiggles his fingers for him, tugs him into the kitchen.

It’s not a subtle ploy to leave Neil and Andrew alone, but Neil doesn’t need subtle. He turns to look at Andrew as he stands, coming into Neil’s space. “You _could_ use a mute button,” he says, but kisses the twist off Neil’s mouth. He looks Neil in the eyes, so deeply it feels almost like a touch. [Thank you,] he signs.

“You’re welcome,” Neil whispers.

Andrew doesn’t open either of his new soothers just then, but he very pointedly keeps them close. “Your phone,” he says, turning away.

Neil hadn’t even registered the constant buzzing until Andrew mentions it. He looks down only for the pleased warmth in his chest to spike, because it’s Allison, all of the messages are excited yelling from Allison about how Neil has _The Best_ ideas and everyone is so cute. Neil is inclined to agree, asks her very politely if he can save the picture of her with a chewy heart between her teeth.

By the time they get to Wymack’s door, they’re all bursting to tell him what Neil and Allison got for them. The room is in chaos as they all shuffle in, getting into their onesies, taking out their stuffies, all talking at once as Wymack does his best to fuss over them.

“So our Captain found a treasure,” Wymack says, looking at the doubloon hanging around her neck.

“Uh-huh!” Dan exclaims, putting it in her mouth. “Alli goddit fo’ me,” she says, words garbled around the plastic.

“I got a light saber!” Matt exclaims holding up the bright green teether for Wymack to see.

Renee doesn’t say anything just then, holding onto Allison’s arm and giggling around her pacifier as Allison clips the end to her onesie. “Renee wanted a binky!” she explains, “I got a purple one so it matches Lulu!” Lulu, of course, being Renee’s elephant.

Wymack grins at that. “That was very thoughtful, hon.”

Neil had washed his pacifier off when he stepped into the bathroom to change with Andrew, and had felt his nerves smooth over as soon as he put it in his mouth. Looking in the mirror at himself, he could say…he thinks he actually likes how he looks? He never thought he would _like_ looking vulnerable and innocent, has never thought of himself that way, but apparently there’s a first time for everything. He hadn’t even realized Andrew was staring at him, too, until he reached out blindly and Andrew had caught his hand instantly. He cooed around the soft plastic when Andrew nuzzled his cheek before tugging him out into the main room.

Now, Wymack is tossing his head back to laugh when he sees what Neil’s got in his mouth. Neil is feeling safe and happy enough that he knows it’s about the mute symbol; his dad would never really make fun of him. Still, he goes pink and shy when Wymack pinches his cheek softly. “That’s cute, baby,” he tells him and Neil believes him.

Kevin hasn’t even taken his pacifier out of it’s packaging yet. It’s clenched tightly in his hands when he comes up to Wymack, shyly offering it up for him to see.

Wymack doesn’t know exactly what his face does, but the way his heart melts must be visible because Kevin relaxes all at once. Smiling at him takes work—because Wymack is fighting tears, so sue him—but he takes a moment to tear open the package and turn to the sink. Once it’s washed, he comes back and taps it on Kevin’s lips until he opens his mouth for it.

“Darn right, that’s my little princess,” he says as he pops it in, chuckling as he lets Kevin hide in his arms, blushing scarlet.

As the day rolls on, they all seem so much younger and softer that they wind up all huddled close, mostly paying attention to each other instead of any games or shows. _Sesame Street_ is easy enough to keep up with, even distracted, but eventually they start sagging in a way that makes Wymack figure now is as good of a time as any for a nap. When Renee nudges into Andrew’s space and he signs for her to put her head on his shoulder, she looks so thrilled to be close to Andrew that Wymack leaves them long enough to finish the episode before he announces that it’s nap time. “Go potty first if you need to,” he reminds them, getting up to grab the mats.

They fold into their normal spaces, if a little closer together than usual. Dan giggles as she winds up cocooned between Matt and Nicky, their legs tangled in hers. Renee feels weirdly safe with Matt’s back so close to hers, a fluttering happiness taking over when Allison still twines their fingers together, turning to smile at her as she does.

Neil puts his paci back in his mouth when he lays down, drowsy and content with Allison stretched out along his spine. But when Andrew comes to take his place between Neil and the wall, it very nearly wakes Neil up to see him with his pacifier in his mouth, too. There’s a moment where Neil almost says something about it, but Andrew’s face stops him. He doesn’t look like he’s threatening Neil, like he’s daring him to speak, he just looks too aware of himself, of the way he must look right now. It’s a vulnerability Neil is extremely fortunate to bear witness to, so he doesn’t let himself stare too long. Instead he tips his head, arches his eyebrow in question— _yes or no?_

Andrew graces him with a confused twitch of his brow, but nods trustingly and Neil understands how much that means, could just about cry with the feeling exploding in his chest. Leaning forward, Neil bumps their pacifiers together in a nuzzly little not-kiss that makes Andrew huff, relaxing. He can pretend that noise was annoyance all he wants, Neil knows what his amusement sounds like. He knows what Andrew’s love sounds like, too.

That was both.

On the other end of the sandwich, Aaron is absently chewing his pendant, not really sleepy, but more than happy to relax for a while. Kevin _does_ look sleepy, though, and while Aaron isn’t normally big on being close up while they’re all napping, he looks over at Kevin and can’t quite process _why_. Kevin is normally a hard-ass, an exy junkie on a mission, but this isn’t _that_ Kevin, this is Princess Kev. This version of Kevin is in a soft pink onesie, sucking on a binky, looking droopy about the eyes and Aaron—is a grown man except when he’s not, because he’s little—finds this _horrendously_ cute. Kevin looks like someone should be cuddling him and, someone call _Ripley’s Believe It or Not_ , Aaron wants to be that someone.

Waving his hand to get Kevin’s attention, he signs slowly, [Can we touch?]

Kevin blinks at him, sleepily confused, and spells out, [C-u-d-d-l-e?] When Aaron nods at him, Kevin holds his lion out of the way and pulls Aaron close. And Aaron would like to think he maintains some dignity about all this, but… but he’s short. So if he winds up tucked under Kevin’s chin, curled into his chest, nobody here is going to make fun of him.

They’re all little compared to someone.

 Normally, Wymack would take nap time to check his emails or do some quick work while his littles get some rest. Today, though, he can’t make himself want to leave the room for any length of time at all. He lays out on the couch above them, watches over them. He watches them all squish together, some sucking pacifiers, some just cuddling with their faces pressed against the soft fabric of their friends pajamas or their stuffies.

Kevin meets his eyes over Aaron’s head and Wymack smiles, his insides going warm and liquid-soft when Kevin’s pacifier bobs with his tiny smile before his face sags gently and he falls asleep, just like that.

Wymack almost can’t stand how happy this makes him, _they_ make him. His little nightmares, safe and sound, warm and happy.

Finally living like the loved little kids they always should’ve been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading…you can never ever, ever be so damaged as to be unlovable
> 
>  
> 
> Oh bother, what a sappy mess I’ve made! I thoroughly enjoyed it, though, and I hope you did, too! I’d love to hear from you!
> 
> Also! For anyone who didn’t know: halfway through working on this I got mad at myself. Even though this was a completely self-indulgent fluffy mess, I didn’t give everyone the fluff they deserve. So there’s going to be a part 2 in which Seth lives and he (and Jean!) get in on this.  
> So either way, this is goodnight, not goodbye!


End file.
